Naruto no Hohoemi
by King Oz
Summary: Through Naruto's journey to adulthood, he finds his act has started to become harder than ever to pull off and through the cracking of his mask, Sasuke comes to realize that Naruto's smiles hide more demons than just the Kyuubi...SasuNaru DISCONTINUED
1. True Shinobi

Spoilers up to the latest chapter in the manga (around 194-195). I'm trying to keep this as close to the series as possible... but if that were truly possible... it would BE the series.  
  
DISCLAIMER: This goes for every Naruto Fic I write... I do not own them (if I did I'd tell you, trust me...) The closest thing I got is my Naruto and Sasuke plushie... that's about it... and no one's getting em... (I'm only saying this once, so you better have paid attention)  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: Following the life of Naruto as he grows older, certain events change the way he looks at the world around him and who he values in his life.  
  
Pairings: Now if I told you that then it would spoil it for you... no definite pairings in the first chapters. Though if you know me and the fics I write you know how it will eventually end up.  
  
Chapter Title: 1. True Shinobi  
  
Naruto scanned the trees to his left. The enemy was no where to be found, and they had all been split up. He could feel his heart pounding through his chest as the pressure and waiting began to make him nervous. He shifted on the balls of his feet, crouched low in the branches, waiting for a sign. They had already lost Choji, Neji and Kiba, fighting off the other four of Orochimaru's ninjas. Now it was Shikamaru and him who were left to deal with the last ninja, carrying Sasuke's coffin back to his Hidden Sound village.  
  
Letting the last ounce of patience run out of him, Naruto hopped forward silently to another branch in an effort to keep from running ahead brashly. He knew it would get both of them killed, but he couldn't keep his body still long enough to wait for Shikamaru's signal. He continued hopping from one branch to another until he finally caught sight of both Shikamaru and the last ninja, Tayuya.  
  
Shikamaru had apparently set a trap for him and was just waiting for the right time to spring it on the other blond. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on who you ask) Tayuya was stopped for an entirely different reason, his feet falling short of Shikamaru's trap by a few trees. In an instant, Shikamaru had bolted, not wanting to be discovered, and took the round-about route back to Naruto. He landed softly on the branch right beside the young blond and they sat quietly, wondering what Tayuya and the man he'd stopped for were talking about.  
  
After a few seconds of getting used to the background noises they were able to train their ears enough to catch most of the conversation, and their vantage point was perfect for seeing without being seen (especially since Naruto had abandoned his bright orange jacket hours ago and his pants were covered in clumps of mud and dried blood stains.  
  
"You idiot!!" The man yelled at Tayuya, menacingly. From that statement alone, Naruto recognised the voice and it made his blood freeze and his body went ridged. Shikamaru noticed it and turned to the boy.  
  
"What is it?" He whispered softly, knowing it would probably benefit their mission to know the reason for Naruto's reaction to the voice. Naruto's eyes never left the two ninjas as he answered.  
  
"That's the man Sasuke was going to find, Orochimaru." He breathed. The chuunin nodded and returned his attention to the conversation.  
  
"The curse was NOT supposed to be advanced this soon!" Orochimaru screamed. "I wanted him trained and possessed before *I* brought the body to level two. I wanted his body to be mine before this happened, you imbecile." Tayuya was cowering before the outraged man. He took a step back in fear and dropped the coffin to the ground. Orochimaru tore through the seals and wood that contained Sasuke's half-dead body. His skin pale and his form lifeless, Sasuke tumbled to the forest floor, landing at the feet of the raging ninja.  
  
Naruto growled softly in his throat when he saw Sasuke fall out looking like he was dead. Shikamaru noted the sound and decided not to say anything until later. He couldn't believe what was happening to one of his fellow shinobi.  
  
"Take him back to the village and make sure he is attended to. If he gets worse you'll die. Tell the men to put two guards on the door and never let him leave. I'll see him when he's regained some of the life you sucked out of him." Orochimaru nodded curtly to Tayuya and disappeared, just as the trembling ninja gathered the Uchiha boy's limp body into his arms and head straight for the village of the Hidden Sound as fast as he could. Naruto was ready to go right after him, but he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He turned to Shikamaru and glared.  
  
"We have to get him back." He exclaimed. "Now's our chance to swipe him from that bastard." Shikamaru sighed and shook his head.  
  
"No, we need to wait." He replied. "Sasuke is practically dead," he noticed another low growl from the blond, "and he'll just weigh us down if we try to rescue him like this. Orochimaru said he'll have guards on him, and he won't go near him until he's more or less healed. That's when we strike." Naruto still looked angry about having to wait, but he stayed quiet, willing to hear what Shikamaru had to say. He continued. "This gives us time to rest up ourselves, wait for the others to catch up to us and plan out something a little more effective than a simple ambush." Naruto nodded his head slowly. His plan made sense.  
  
"With the extra help from Kiba, Neji and Choji we can do more damage to the guards, ne?" Shikamaru nodded. He was surprised that Naruto was more than just an annoying brat who didn't listen to directions, like everyone had grown up to believe. "Can we at least follow them so we know where they're keeping him?" Naruto asked, keeping his temper in check. Shikamaru nodded curtly and jumped to the ground, pulling out a kunai and marking the tree like he had for all the others. Naruto was already a dozen trees ahead of him making sure not to lose track of Tayuya as he headed towards the village with Sasuke's body slung over his shoulder.  
  
***  
  
They followed Tayuya to the village and watched as Sasuke was taken into one of the central buildings, before heading back to the forest to camp out and wait for the others. It didn't take long, after they'd set up their place for the night, for Choji to come tumbling back.  
  
"Choji!" Shikamaru whispered, knowing enough not to be too loud. The boy looked different and it didn't take Naruto much time to notice this either.  
  
"Did you lose weight out there?" He mumbled, finishing off his ramen. Choji was still looking thin from using the third pill in his fight against Jiroubou. Shikamaru smacked the boy over the back of the head and ran over to embrace his best friend.  
  
"I can't believe you survived the red pepper pill!" He hugged Choji tightly. The boy grinned his best and hugged back, glad to know that Shikamaru had worried over his safety.  
  
"Yeah. I survived the pill, demo... where's Sasuke, and where are the others?" He asked, his voice hinting at his own nervousness.  
  
"Kiba stayed behind to tackle the two-headed freak and Neji handled another one named Kidoumaru. The blond guy took Sasuke back to the sound village." Naruto replied. Shikamaru nodded and returned to his spot, opposite of Naruto.  
  
"We're going to wait for another day and see if everyone comes back. Then we were going to make a plan and rescue Sasuke." The chuunin added, earning them a snort from the blond.  
  
"Nani?" Choji asked. Naruto folded his arms across his chest.  
  
"If Sasuke ever heard that you came to 'rescue' his royal ass then he'd not only stay with Orochimaru, he'd fight us to the death." Shikamaru sighed and for the first time thanked Tsunade-sama for recommending Naruto for his team. The blond gennin was the only one among them that knew Sasuke personally, which meant he could (fairly accurately) predict the missing boy's reactions. "He nearly killed me the last time I tried that by bringing Tsunade-baba back to cure him. I don't think he likes looking as though he needs someone else's help. He's stubborn and will do just about anything to prove he doesn't need other people." Naruto rolled his eyes, thinking about Sasuke. Shikamaru nodded, revising his plan in his head.  
  
"So then, what now?" Choji asked. The chuunin frowned.  
  
"We'll wait for a little bit." He replied. "I don't want to plan too quickly if there is a chance that Kiba or Neji might or might not come back." The blond growled at his choice of words.  
  
"You have so little faith in them?" He spat.  
  
"I'm being realistic. Those ninja had far more advanced techniques and you're forgetting that you are nothing more than gennin."  
  
"I think they're still alive." Naruto retorted. "And you're forgetting that you're not that far ahead of us."  
  
"Guys, don't fight." Choji interrupted. He was over at Shikamaru's backpack digging through it.  
  
"What are you after?" Shikamaru asked, curious. He tried looking over his shoulder but saw nothing until Choji straightened out with three bags of potato chips in his hands. He grinned at his best friend and sat down between him and the blond boy who was slowly grating on their nerves. Shikamaru laughed. "What happened to the ones you had?" Choji huffed.  
  
"Jiroubou ate my last bag." He grumbled in annoyance, pouting like a little kid. Naruto stayed quiet and watched the best friends have their conversation.  
  
"Well go ahead and take as many as you want. I've got tons more stored up." Choji nodded and popped open his first bag, replenishing his charka reserves.  
  
"Nice to see you haven't lost your appetite, Akimichi-kun." A voice echoed through the woods, followed by a revealing bark of agreement. "Akamaru! You were supposed to stay quiet! My entrance was supposed to be dramatic! You've ruined it, now!" There was a whine of apology, followed by, "Aww, it's okay. It wasn't *that* important." Inuzuka Kiba emerged from the woods a few seconds afterwards, grinning triumphantly, Akamaru trotting behind him. Naruto grinned at the distraction and huffed in Shikamaru's direction.  
  
"Told you they'd make it back." The chuunin rolled his eyes.  
  
"Then where's Neji?" He retorted, frowning. Not only was the blond annoyingly loud, but he was also extremely stubborn.  
  
"Right behind you." A soft voice chuckled behind him. Shikamaru swivelled around and stared at the gennin in awe. Not only had they all returned, like Naruto had predicted, but they looked relatively healed from their battles, only Neji seemed to be limping slightly. He was shocked that he had underestimated them all. He hadn't thought they were as strong as they all seemed to believe. He cursed himself for only trusting his best friend to return safely. Apparently, they all took his speech about Choji personally and made it apply to each of them. Naruto had kept the faith that they would return unharmed. Another point for Tsunade's recommendation. He looked down to Neji's leg and noticed the bandages soaked with blood.  
  
"Are you okay?" Neji nodded.  
  
"I'll be fine by morning." He replied and promptly dropped himself beside Naruto and curling up to go to sleep and recharge, similar to what Choji was doing. Shikamaru nodded and looked to the other boy. He was on his third bag of chips and was looking healthier and more energized. He grinned and let his back rest on a tree trunk, while watching over his team mates.  
  
"In the morning we'll discuss the plan." He announced before Neji fell asleep. They all nodded. "I'll take first watch shift, then Naruto, Kiba, Choji and last will be Neji. Get some rest guys. We're going to bring Sasuke back tomorrow even if we have to take him kicking and screaming." Naruto snickered at the mental image that brought.  
  
"I think I'm going to have good dreams tonight, thinking of that." He chuckled to himself and fell asleep lying against his own tree.  
  
***  
  
In the morning, after they had gone over the plan three times to make sure everyone understood, Shikamaru led the four gennin into the village. They walked into the hospital where Sasuke was being held and got as far as the same hallway he was in before they noticed guards. Three men were standing outside the boy's room, wearing traditional chuunin outfits and carrying their kunais in very firm grips. Shikamaru smirked and thanked the hospital for being foolish enough to have built windows letting in the morning sunshine.  
  
"Lets go." He whispered to everyone and walked straight towards the men. Immediately they were in a fighting stance and lunged at the Hidden Leaf boy, but were halted in mid jump. "Not so fast." Shikamaru exclaimed and shook his head. The seemingly frozen ninjas mirrored his movements. Neji stepped forward and, carefully avoiding Shikamaru's shadow, made quick work of closing all 64 chakra holes on their bodies. Then Choji stepped up and forced all his charka into one hand and knocked them all unconscious.  
  
"That takes care of that." Naruto grinned and opened the door to Sasuke's room, unprepared for the sight that met the five boys.  
  
Right in front of them was Orochimaru completing his immortality jutsu on Sasuke's body. Orochimaru's old body slumped to the floor and Sasuke rose from the bed, grinning maliciously at the five. Naruto was the first to react, running up to Sasuke and slamming his fist into the other boy's face, but he continued to smirk.  
  
"It's done, boy." Orochimaru used Sasuke's voice and effectively gave it his trademark snake-like venom to let them know who was now in charge. "His body is mine and there was nothing any of you could do to stop me." He laughed.  
  
"Fuck you, monster." Naruto spat (quite literally) in his face, before grabbing hold of Sasuke's shoulders and slamming him into the nearest wall, pinning him there. "You stupid asshole." He muttered, but it was obvious that he was no longer talking to Orochimaru. "I thought you were stronger than this, Sasuke-kun. I thought you didn't need to rely on weak snakes like this to achieve your goals. You weren't this weak before. I didn't think you were so weak you needed to use other people to inhabit your body to exact your revenge for you." Sasuke twitched. "Cause that's what you're doing. You're letting Orochimaru kill Itachi for you. I thought *YOU* wanted to avenge your clan's death. I thought you wanted to be stronger than me. If you take this way out you are lower than filth. Trash. Garbage. And I will ALWAYS be better than you, because even someone like me is stronger than garbage like you." He hissed out, glaring at the boy. Sasuke erupted into laughter.  
  
"He's gone, you fool." Orochimaru spoke through Sasuke. "Just like every body I've taken over, his soul has receded and eventually it will die, just like that body over there." He nodded to the lifeless body Orochimaru left behind. Naruto looked back and saw the defeat written over his teams' faces. They had already accepted the fact that Sasuke was gone and they had failed their first mission together. But Naruto wasn't willing to accept defeat. He'd go down kicking and screaming and do his best to make sure Sasuke did too.  
  
"Sasuke's stronger than that." He snarled. Orochimaru looked as though he was about to say something else when his eye began to twitch. Naruto grinned. "Fight him Sasuke." He whispered. Even though Sasuke had been hospitalized during their battle, Naruto couldn't help but think of Sakura when she fought to get Ino out of her mind.  
  
Sure enough, Sasuke's form fell to the floor, holding his head. Everyone behind Naruto was stunned but remembered the battle too. This gave them a little ray of hope and they started cheering for Sasuke in their heads.  
  
"No." Orochimaru hissed out defiantly. Suddenly, his facial features contorted into a look of both pain and struggle.  
  
"I'm not... letting... that dobe... win like this..." Sasuke gritted out. Naruto smirked and knelt beside Sasuke's shaking body, placing a hand on his shoulder in support. It was quickly slapped away as Orochimaru regained control of the body for a few seconds before their battle continued. They continued their inner struggle for a few more minutes before Sasuke stood up steadily.  
  
He placed his hands in front of him in the shape of a seal none of them had ever seen before and the corpse in front of him twitched back to life. Both began panting in exertion. Naruto stands up and moves to tower over Orochimaru's body.  
  
"I say we kick his ass now, ask questions later." He growled, kicking the sennin in the side. He would have done a lot worse but the sound of hurried footsteps alerted them all to guards.  
  
"We've got Sasuke, baka." Shikamaru muttered and turned to the open window, but before he could jump out of it, he was thrown back inside by one of Orochimaru's ninjas. It took him a second to get over his sudden disorientation, but he was quickly on his feet and backing up before the kunai the ninja threw could hit him. "Shit." He cursed under his breath, moving so that he had his back to the other three gennin from his team, guarding the door. Naruto helped Sasuke to his feet by sliding his arm around his waist and propping the weak boy's arm over his shoulder. Orochimaru was still panting on the floor.  
  
"You know what we've got to do, guys." Shikamaru nodded and lunged at the nearest pair of Chuunin. They immediately began fighting and Naruto, using the distraction to his advantage jumped out the window and up to the roof, where he lay Sasuke down.  
  
"Are you okay, Sasuke?" He asked, a frown on his face. Sasuke sat up straight holding his head and nodded.  
  
"I need to get down there." He muttered and made to stand up, but Naruto pushed him back down, grabbing hold of his shoulders.  
  
"Baka!" He exclaimed. "I did not work my ass off to come and bring your ass back to Konoha just to have you run back in their while you can't fight and kill yourself. If you want to be a hero, then do it your own way because when I go back I'll tell them you died fighting against us." Sasuke heaved a great big sigh of frustration, rolling his eyes at Naruto's stubbornness. He looked at the blond and noticed that his attention was no longer focused on him, but on the roof they were on. He saw Naruto's ear twitch as if listening to something before he realized that there were no sounds of fighting coming from below them. Naruto looked back to Sasuke again, fear etched in his face. They both jumped back down to the hospital room balcony only to find Shikamaru, Kiba, Choji and Neji looking around, totally confused.  
  
"What happened?" Naruto asked, stepping into the room, carefully avoiding the bloody shards of glass from the fight. Shikamaru looked up and shrugged.  
  
"I don't know." He replied. "One minute we were fighting and the next they were gone." Everyone nodded. Sasuke cursed, making them all turn around.  
  
"Nani?"  
  
"Orochimaru is gone, too." He said, kicking the place where Orochimaru used to be with his foot. Naruto began to curse under his breath. They all understood Naruto's frustration, knowing that Orochimaru will just keep coming back until he's killed or until he gets control of Sasuke's body for good. He'd just go away, become even stronger and try again. People like him didn't give up so easily.  
  
"Let's not worry too much about that right now." Shikamaru spoke up, turning to Sasuke. "Orochimaru lost a lot of charka not only performing that jutsu on you, but trying to keep your body, so he'll be out of commission for a while. You have time to work on your own jutsus and preparing yourself for another attack from Orochimaru. That is, if you want to come back with us." He held out his hand to Sasuke, who eyed it thoughtfully.  
  
"We can't guarantee we'll save you every time you're in danger, Sasuke- chan!" Naruto teased, slapping Sasuke on the shoulder suddenly. "But we will help you train, and we will try our best to help you fight him. After all... helping you train will help us train too!" He grinned. Sasuke paused before finally accepting Shikamaru's hand.  
  
"Congratulations, Shikamaru-kun." He nodded to the chuunin vest. The other boy looked down to the vest before responding with a smirk. Naruto scoffed.  
  
"Those of us 'True Shinobi' go about it the hard way, no shortcuts!" He laughed. "Maybe you can still catch up to our level." Sasuke rolled his eyes.  
  
"I don't see you wearing a Chuunin vest, Naruto-chan." He retorted. The blond narrowed his eyes at him in the best glare he could achieve and began yelling profanity at him. Sasuke snorted. "And I'm supposed to be learning from a *DOBE* like you?"  
  
"WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!!"  
  
"Oh, my mistake-"  
  
"That's right..."  
  
"Dobe-CHAN!"  
  
"NANI!?  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
There you have it. Good on it's own, or with a couple of more chapters... I mean, this could have been a one-shot... practically is. 


	2. Sasuke's New Jutsu

Two things to point out. Before I said (SasuNaru) in the summary I got practically no reviews... and now I think I've got four in one day. I have found a way to manipulate the masses! And number two, this is a multi- chaptered story, but the first two can actually be read like One-shots. So if you want to stop after this one then by all means go ahead. ^-^  
  
To Riyue: Actually, you don't actually see him die. He says that the red pepper pill will kill him, and he collapses against the tree, but you never see him actually die. So, based on that, I kept Choji alive. This story isn't AU. (If it is, then so are every single fan fic out there, ne?) Also the ninja he was fighting against was Jiroubu.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: As Naruto grows up, certain events, horrible and amazing, change the way he looks at the world around him and who he values in his life.  
  
Pairings: Now if I told you that then it would spoil it for you... no definite pairings in the first chapters. Though if you know me and the fics I write you know how it will eventually end up. (SasuNaru for those of you who are as naïve and dense as me..)  
  
Chapter Title: 2. Sasuke's New Jutsu  
  
For a long while after the group got home, Sasuke couldn't go anywhere without Sakura demanding to know his whereabouts. She was always terrified that he'd leave her again. It didn't help that for the most part Sasuke couldn't stand to be anywhere around her because his previous statement to her of 'You make me sick' still applied. He did his best to avoid her and most of the time he was pretty good at it. Now wasn't one of those times.  
  
"Sasuke-kun, just where do you think you're going?" A voice screeched from behind him. He had been crouched down low and had his backpack slung over one shoulder, hoping to make a clean getaway. He sighed and turned around.  
  
"Out." He rolled his eyes going over the routine in his head. Next she'd ask 'Out where?'  
  
"Out where?" He smirked inwardly.  
  
"Naruto's to do training." He responded. "Sakura, I ALWAYS go to Naruto's house when we don't have missions at this exact time of day to practice and train. Would you stop bugging me and for once leave me alone." He narrowed his eyes, knowing that, once again, he wasn't getting through to her, so he decided to try something new. "If I wanted to leave the village you'd never know until I was miles away, so give up now."  
  
Sakura frowned and bit her lip. He knew she was trying to do what she thought was right but it was too much. If she kept this up she'd soon have Ino joining her. He wrinkled his nose at that thought.  
  
"Fine." She whispered. "I'll stop bugging you about where you're going, but don't think for a second that I'm going to stop watching you." He sweatdropped. She sounded like a stalker... oh wait... she was one.  
  
"Fine." He shrugged and continued walking. He was happy to finally have some peace from her annoyance. Maybe Naruto would stop laughing at him for it.  
  
Sasuke had been back from the Sound Village for a couple of months now and was relieved to find that only a select few knew about his disappearance, and fewer still knew why he'd left. Sasuke knew that the five who came after him and Kakashi, Sakura and Tsunade wouldn't be telling anyone else anytime soon, although they constantly were keeping an eye on him to make sure he wouldn't run off again. Luckily for him, Naruto never looked at him like that, however, he often got lost in his thoughts and, when his face would turn to a frown, he knew the boy was thinking about him. He shook his head. Maybe it was nothing more than his overactive imagination.  
  
He came to Naruto's apartment door and opened it. They had a certain understanding between them. Naruto knew Sasuke would come everyday at this time so he kept his door open. Things were just easier that way. He looked around the front entrance and noticed Naruto wasn't there.  
  
"Must be in his bedroom practicing again," Sasuke muttered to himself, dropping his backpack beside the door. He was just about to turn the knob when a young blonde girl appeared between him and the door. A young blonde *NAKED* girl, that is. Sasuke frowned and rolled his eyes at her obvious attempts at being flirtatious.  
  
"I already know about your Oiroke no jutsu, dobe." He snorted as a look of frustration clouded her pretty face.  
  
"Chikuso!!" She yelled, making a fist.  
  
"Also, pretty young girls aren't supposed to swear." He added, pushing past her into Naruto's room.  
  
"So you think I'm pretty, Sasuke-baka?" She asked sweetly. He shrugged.  
  
"The fact that I know who you really are kind of ruins it." He replied flatly, sitting on Naruto's bed, facing her. In a puff of smoke Naruto returned to his original form and plopped down beside the other boy.  
  
"Ne, Sasuke, I'm going to teach you how to do that jutsu, so you can better do infiltration missions." He beamed proudly.  
  
"I can do Henge no jutsu just fine, baka." And to prove his point, he transformed into a normal girl from their village. Naruto felt his eye starting to twitch but he calmed himself down.  
  
"*DOBE*." Naruto yelled with a smirk. "Anyone can do Henge no jutsu, demo you look plain. Ordinary. DULL!" He pumped his fist into the air. "She's too normal looking. She's good if you want to be a fly on the wall. What if you want to cause a distraction? You'd fail. Oiroke is good for seducing the enemy." Naruto grinned and ignored that Sasuke had muttered under his breath 'You're already enough of a distraction, yourself. Why don't I just Henge no jutsu into you?'.  
  
"Fine," He shrugged, not really wanting to just spar today. "Teach me oh wise and wonderful sensei."  
  
"That's better... wait a second... are you being sarcastic?" Naruto narrowed his eyes at Sasuke.  
  
"Just get on with it, dobe."  
  
***  
  
"KYAAH!!!" Naruto screamed. "No!! She's supposed to be more eye-catching. Make her slimmer, more beautiful. Hell, make her breasts bigger if you must. Longer hair! And for Kami's sakes get rid of the stupid clothing!" He was fuming. Sasuke had been at this for over three hours and even WITH his Sharingan he couldn't get the basics of Naruto's Oiroke no jutsu. Sasuke was starting to show weariness from using too much chakra. He gritted his teeth at Naruto's impatience and formed the seals, trying again.  
  
"Oiroke no jutsu!" He cried, a puff of smoke engulfing him. When it cleared the only difference the blond could point out was the slight enlargement of breasts and the longer hair. He fell down onto his bed as if it had been him doing the work.  
  
"You're never going to learn it, are you, Sasuke?" Sasuke frowned and sat where he was.  
  
"I can learn it, dobe, but I don't want to do it naked like you." He retorted between pants. "I'd rather do it with dignity and skill than your vulgar attempts."  
  
"Whatever." Came the reply. "I bet you couldn't convince me with your Oiroke no jutsu in a million years." Sasuke scoffed.  
  
"I can recognise your jutsu so easily. What makes you so sure I can't beat you?"  
  
"Oh I don't know... maybe it's the fact that you've been at this for over three hours and you still look so plain. Face it, this is one jutsu you can't perfect." Naruto grinned. He'd finally found one thing he'd mastered completely and Sasuke couldn't even learn the basics.  
  
"I can and will." The dark-haired genin snapped. "You have yourself a bet. Meet me at the bench where we usually eat lunch at noon in two days."  
  
"Fine, don't be late like Kakashi though." Sasuke stood up and went out into the hall, followed closely by Naruto. The shorter boy smirked. "Just try and fool me!" He crowed. The other was unaffected by his boasting. He picked up his bag, still at the door, and walked out.  
  
"I won't try, I will." He threw over his shoulder, leaving Naruto to fume over this.  
  
***  
  
After two days of waiting anxiously, Naruto sat on the bench five minutes before noon, waiting again. He was extremely impatient and wanted to see what Sasuke would try on him. He smirked knowing it was Sasuke's downfall by telling Naruto the time and place he'd show him. All Naruto had to do was deny that Sasuke had perfected his jutsu and he'd win the bet. Not that they'd wagered anything on it except pride.  
  
Coming up to him, while he was lost in thought, was a beautiful young girl with long dark hair. The blonde noticed her walking up to him and quickly gave her a once-over. She had the long hair, the slightly larger than normal breasts, a nice slender figure and dark mischievous eyes. He was thoroughly stunned, but wouldn't let Sasuke win.  
  
"Ohayo." She greeted him shyly. "Is anyone sitting here... er... what's your name?" She asked. Naruto moved over so the could sit beside him.  
  
"It's Naruto." He replied. "But then you should know that, shouldn't you, Sasuke?" The girl gave him an odd look.  
  
"As in Uchiha Sasuke?" She frowned. "I don't look like a guy do I?!" Naruto crossed his arms smugly.  
  
"Hai, Uchiha Sasuke. You can't fool me baka. This justu is terrible. You look nothing like a beautiful sexy young girl." He didn't notice that the girl beside him was fuming until she slapped him across the face and walked off.  
  
"BAKAYARO!" She yelled back venomously. Naruto winced realising too late that the girl was in fact a normal beautiful girl. He heard a soft chuckling behind him.  
  
"Go ahead and laugh it up, Sasuke." He muttered, not bothering to turn around. He knew he had messed up big time.  
  
"Nani? Don't tell me you're going to insult me too." Naruto turned around to find another girl even more beautiful than the first, but he was still sceptical. "You really upset my friend, Naruto was it?" He nodded, realising that she was not Sasuke after all.  
  
"Gomen nasai. I didn't mean to upset your friend. I was expecting a friend and I just assumed she was him." The girl nodded. She had soft, deep eyes and a similar body to her friends, but her hair was shorter, fell in waves around her face, and was a colour similar to Choji's dirty blond.  
  
"She doesn't look like a guy to me." She replied. Naruto didn't want to tell this girl the deal between him and Sasuke so he kept quiet about it.  
  
"Yeah, gomen." She smiled at him when he put his hand behind his head nervously. "You know, Naruto-kun. You're kind of cute. I've heard all sorts of bad things about how annoying you are, but none of it's true, ne?"  
  
"None of it." He repeated.  
  
"How would you like to go out for ramen with me for lunch?" She asked, tilting her head cutely to the side. Every little facial expression seemed to have Naruto's full attention.  
  
"Hai!" He exclaimed before remembering about Sasuke. "Demo, I was supposed to wait for Sasuke." He frowned, cursing Sasuke in his head. That stupid idiot was making him miss an important opportunity.  
  
"Well, when was he supposed to meet you here?"  
  
"Noon."  
  
"It's already half past. I don't think he's going to show." Naruto nodded.  
  
"Maybe you're right." She giggled and kissed Naruto on the cheek.  
  
"I'm always right." Naruto was surprised by the kiss, but was determined to get her next one on his lips. She leaned in slowly, an odd twinkle in her eyes, and was about to kiss Naruto on the lips when a loud *POOF* was heard and her body disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Naruto opened his eyes at the sound and saw Sasuke's face just inches from his own, a wide victorious smirk planted on it. The blond's eyes went wide and a long stream of curses flew from his mouth.  
  
"SASUKE!" He screamed. "Chikuso, you stupid TEME!!" The other boy looked like he was about to burst out laughing, which was a hard thing to imagine. Naruto continued to spew out a number of colourful curses, trying to ignore the fact that Sasuke actually did trick him. He had to admit that she was very beautiful and had captured his attention completely. 'Doesn't mean I have to acknowledge it out loud.' He thought to himself, storming off angrily, leaving Sasuke on the bench.  
  
"I'm always right!" Sasuke called after Naruto, earning another mouthful of muttered swearing. The truth was, Sasuke had held back purposefully for this exact moment when he could make Naruto's plans back-fire. He smirked watching Naruto stomping his feet extra hard, pointlessly trying to be loud and angry.  
  
***  
  
Up in a nearby tree, Kakashi sat watching the two bemusedly. He was glad that Sasuke was feeling better than when he decided to leave. Naruto's presence was better for him now than previously. A few months ago, Naruto would have sparked more confrontations, a notion that kept Kakashi watching the pair. He wanted to make sure they didn't explode again and try to Chidori-Rasengan their asses a second time.  
  
"Still watching them?" A voice sounded behind him. "You've got other things to worry about, like a war." Kakashi shrugged and pulled out his book, Icha Icha Paradaisu.  
  
"Maybe so, demo those two are also of my concern, their potential is great and if they try and kill each other they're useless to everyone, Iruka."  
  
"You've been avoiding me, Kakashi-kun." Iruka sat down beside the silver- haired shinobi. "Why are you trying to distance yourself from me?"  
  
"We shouldn't worry over such trivial things." Kakashi retorted. "You should be focusing more on training your students than me and my soldiers. You have a job you should be doing. Talk to me when I'm not so busy." He dismissed the chuunin.  
  
"You're too busy for me?!" He spat angrily, keeping his voice to a whisper. "But you can still read that stupid book! I thought I was worth more than that. We were supposed to be friends, comrades." Kakashi nodded and put down the book.  
  
"Hai, hai, gomen nasai Iruka-kun. This book helps me concentrate." He looked over his shoulder to his close friend. "And you know about what happened to my last friends."  
  
"Baka, you think I'm going to die if you get too close to me?" Iruka challenged. The jounin sighed.  
  
"Maybe."  
  
"And what if you push me away to much?" Iruka disappeared, letting Kakashi dwell on that question.  
  
'I don't know, but I'm afraid of both possible answers.' He thought to himself, picking up his book again.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well... There's the first hinting of a pairing! Kakashi and Iruka! Of course, I'm not one to make things easy on anyone... 


	3. Unwelcome Demon

Well... I guess chapter two was an utter flop. Not that I'm surprised. I guess it really did suck, however I'm not one to give up so easily. Let's just say that, while the first two could have easily been one-shots of their own, this chapter will be the one that starts connecting ideas all together. I hope maybe this one gets someone's attention.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: So far, nothing... if you know me and the fics I write you know how it will eventually end up.  
  
Chapter Title: 3. Unwelcome Demon  
  
Since Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke never passed the chuunin exam the second time (too busy with the war to take it), they continued to work as team seven, completing many missions together. Occasionally, though, Naruto would be called away from the team by Shikamaru who had developed a trust in the blond and only wanted him, among certain others, to go with him on the higher-class missions. Most times this special honour went straight to his head, like when he returned from his missions and boasted of his successes to Sasuke who had remained behind to do the D-class missions of a genin, but most of the time he was much too tired to do anything more than sleep his missions off.  
  
"He's late!" Sakura cried out in frustration, surprised that for once she wasn't complaining about Kakashi. "He was supposed to be back from his mission yesterday, so what's taking him so long?" Kakashi was ignoring her whining and focusing on his book and Sasuke had been sent to retrieve the lazy blonde. He'd been spending too much time with Shikamaru.  
  
After about another half hour of complaining, the pink-haired kunoichi stomped her foot and slumping to the ground in exhaustion. Kakashi looked up from his book and looked from the girl to the road, smirking beneath his face mask.  
  
"Ohayo Sasuke-kun." He greeted cheerfully and loudly, in order to wake the thing lying on Sasuke's back.  
  
"NARUTO!!" Sakura screeched, jumping up and smacking the boy hard on the head. This was effective in waking the poor boy up.  
  
"Itai, Sakura-chan." He muttered, rubbing his head delicately. "Nice to see you too." Stifling a yawn, he rolled his shoulder to work out the kinks from his nice little nap.  
  
"Baka! You were supposed to be here two hours ago!" Naruto looked up and smiled apologetically to her.  
  
"Gomen nasai. I had a big mission, though." Sakura ground her teeth and clenched her fists, furiously.  
  
"Hai and now we've finally got a big mission of our own, dobe." Sasuke interrupted before they could start a one-sided argument that would result in a very sore Naruto. "Can we go now?" He looked up to Kakashi who nodded.  
  
"So, what exactly is our mission, anyways?" Naruto asked after ten minutes of wandering.  
  
"It's a B-class mission." Kakashi explained. "We're escorting the Fire Country Lord's wife out of Konoha to the Hidden Stone village just inside Earth Country."  
  
"The one who lost her cat?!" Naruto moaned. He never did like that lady; she gave him the creeps. Kakashi nodded.  
  
"It shouldn't take too long." Sasuke nodded and they went to pick the large woman and her cat, Tora, up.  
  
***  
  
Things went smoothly, with the occasional fight between Sasuke and Naruto or Naruto and the Fire Country Lord's wife. The woman snubbed the boy which ticked him off thoroughly and when she was safe and sound in the Earth Country he couldn't get away fast enough.  
  
"I swear that woman hates me!" The blond exclaimed, throwing his hands up. No one cared enough to agree or disagree, so Naruto was left to sulk on his own. A sudden rustling in the bushes caught his attention, cutting off his next complaint. "Did you hear that?" He asked, pointing in the general direction of the noises.  
  
"Don't tell me you're going to start that again, baka!" Sakura whined. Last time Naruto had flinched at every noise they ended up with dinner enough to last them a couple of weeks.  
  
"I'm telling the truth!" Naruto persisted until Kakashi stopped, hearing it too.  
  
"Naruto may be right, though it's probably nothing more than some wild animals." He continued walking, not realising that now even Sasuke was nervous. The silver-haired jounin, on the other hand, hid his unease very well.  
  
All of a sudden there was another rustling, from another bush and dozens of kunai were shot out at the team. A handful of them landed where Sakura's head had been and, had Naruto not pushed her to the ground, she might have been hit. With a loud rumbling, the landed kunai began to blow up from the exploding scrolls wrapped around their handles.  
  
"Shit." Sasuke cursed under his breath as six chuunin sound ninjas surrounded them. "A greeting from Orochimaru, I suppose." They all pulled out their kunai and shuriken and began to fight their way past the ninjas.  
  
Two minutes into the fight and Sakura fell to the ground, her body and clothes torn. Kakashi immediately took up his battles above her so he could fight and protect her at the same time.  
  
"Sakura-chan!" Naruto cried, making his way over to the girl. She had numerous gashes covering her entire body and seemed to have lost a lot of blood. Naruto stood up angrily and nodded to his sensei. "I'll look after her, go help Sasuke-kun." He looked to the other genin and noticed that the boy really did need help. He was limping and hunched over, holding his shoulder from which a handful of shuriken were embedded. If it wasn't really serious Naruto would have laughed, the dark-haired shinobi looked almost identical to Kakashi's illusion of him when they first started out. Kakashi noticed this too and jumped off, leaving Naruto to defend his fallen comrade.  
  
"It's okay, Sakura-chan. We're going to make it out of this one." He whispered to the girl not caring whether or not she could hear him, only that the words were said. They helped calm his own heart. Naruto was about to slit the throat of one ninja when he disappeared in a puff of smoke, similar to the last time they met Orochimaru's shinobi. They were only serving as a distraction or a warning. Naruto ground his teeth, knowing this meant the evil snake was planning to make his comeback.  
  
He dropped to the floor to check Sakura's wounds. She seemed to be okay, but her breathing was shallow and irregular.  
  
"Sakura?" He called softly, hoping to wake her but no such luck. He turned around to see Kakashi carrying Sasuke's limp body. "Is he alright?"  
  
"Hai, demo we need to get these two to shelter fast." Naruto nodded, picking up Sakura on his back and began limping in the general direction they had been originally heading. "You need to get that ankle checked out, too." The blond nodded and they continued on, slower than ever.  
  
***  
  
It took them an hour before they finally found a small hut a couple of miles from the Konoha gates. It seemed completely deserted and Naruto would've assumed so if it hadn't been for the small wisps of smoke coming from the chimney. On his back, Sakura began to stir.  
  
"Naruto?" She said, her voice hoarse. "What happened?"  
  
"You passed out, Sakura-chan." Naruto replied. "We're at a hut. We're going to get you and Sasuke some help." She just nodded, not really taking in all that had happened.  
  
Sasuke had woken up a few minutes earlier and was limping at Kakashi's side, using his shoulders as a crutch. He refused to let himself be carried, especially when Naruto was doing fine carrying Sakura.  
  
They came up to the front door and Kakashi knocked loudly. A small, stout woman came to the door, opening it enough to poke her head out. She smiled kindly at the teacher and the corners of her eyes crinkled in delight.  
  
"What can I do for you?" She asked.  
  
"My students are in need of medical assistance. They need a place to stay for the night." She nodded, her expression saddening at the sight of the two wounded. That was before she got a good look at Naruto.  
  
"I'm sorry, but I cannot allow that *THING* into my house." She pointed a crooked finger in the blond's direction. "I will not help that demon under any circumstance!" She narrowed her eyes dangerously and her upper lip curled. Everyone was shocked by her sudden change in attitude, but only Naruto and Kakashi understood what was going on.  
  
The normally cheerful genin's spirit was quickly put out and he let go of Sakura.  
  
"That's okay, I'll go. Please make sure they get help, Kakashi-sensei." He turned to go but Sakura's hand on his arm stopped him. Both she and Sasuke were angry.  
  
"Why should he leave?" She asked, angrily. "He's no different than me or Sasuke. He shouldn't be denied treatment. You're being very disrespectful." The woman scoffed at Sakura's words, bringing a frown to the pink-haired girl's face.  
  
"There's no way, while there's a breath in my body, that I'll let that murdering Kyuubi into my house. Not after the lives he took. The nine- tailed fox demon is not welcome." She spat. The two injured genins were left speechless and Kakashi's face went from nonchalant to flushed with barely suppressed anger.  
  
Naruto went white and bolted.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well... yeah... Poor Naruto. I guess the secret had to come out sooner or later, ne? 


	4. Prejudice

NOTE: I've changed my name (finally) from Chibi Neko-chan3 to Nazo... FYI.  
  
Wow, I'm surprised it worked. I got reviews!! Just to let you people know I'm going to come out with a new chapter about every week... so far, though, I'm only up to chapter six (typed) so... yeah... I'm not going to scare you with how far I've gotten with the outines.  
  
And to Hana RE: your question about Gaara... I'm not entirely sure yet... but I'm at the point in the story (outline) where he has a possibility of showing up... depending on where I send Sasuke and Naruto.  
  
And last but not least, as I continue to read the Naruto Manga... I'm starting to wonder if Chouji and Neji really do make it out of there alive... If they don't then this story branches off around just before Naruto finds out everyone is dead. I figure Kiba is next to go, followed by Shikamaru, leaving Naruto to deal with Sasuke.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: We're starting to develop one relationship in this chapter, though if you know me and the fics I write you know how it will *eventually* end up.  
  
Chapter Title: 4. Prejudice  
  
Sasuke and Sakura were pushed inside the house and told to rest while Kakashi kept the woman outside to have a little 'chat'. Neither of them believed what she said about Naruto, but the only way to be sure was to eavesdrop on the two adults' conversation.  
  
"Do you not live by the rules placed upon us by the Hokage?!" Kakashi yelled. The woman stayed indignant.  
  
"Of course I do!" She exclaimed in a huff. "But I'm not letting a known murderer into my house."  
  
"Naruto is an innocent. Did you forget that speaking word of this to the younger generations was absolutely forbidden by the Fourth?" Sasuke turned to Sakura, clearly intrigued. Kakashi had to have known they were just behind the door, but apparently the damage had been done and he wanted them to know the whole truth and not just a biased opinion.  
  
"The Fourth is dead now, my son is dead now. *His* rules do not apply anymore." Even though they couldn't see anything, the two genin knew Kakashi was angry beyond words now. They could practically feel the heat through the door. "Yondaime is dead and it's all that little brat's fault. There is no way the Kyuubi no Kitsune and the boy's soul can reside in the same body."  
  
"Naruto is in full control of his own body." Kakashi snapped. "The fox demon was sealed. Naruto was sacrificed for the well-being of our entire village and forced to live with everyone who are as ignorant and dull- minded as you."  
  
"Why I-" Sasuke decided he was going to stop their argument from becoming a full out battle. He grabbed Sakura's arm and pulled her through the door, interrupting their dispute.  
  
"Stop it, both of you!" He yelled. "You're fighting like children, lowering yourselves to petty insults. I want to know NOW why we weren't told about Naruto." He narrowed his eyes.  
  
"It was forbidden knowledge." Kakashi's answer was simple, angering Sasuke even more.  
  
"We're past all that, Kakashi-sensei." Sakura retorted. "What's the real reason? We have a right to know."  
  
"Actually you don't, but since you know this much it wouldn't hurt telling you the rest." He sighed and sat down on the front step to the hut. "The villagers hated Naruto, still do, and blamed him for taking the Fourth's life and their telling of Naruto's story would have slanted the truth and he'd be even more loathed than he already is. The Hokage only wished that Naruto could grow up as normally as possible, as a normal child. However, your parents' hatred was passed on through you, for, even though you didn't know why, you all could sense the hostility your parents held for him and adopted the same feelings of contempt. The rest, however, is not really mine to tell." Sakura nodded. It made sense and she began to feel really bad for the way she'd always treated him. The lady bowed her head slightly, still feeling slightly resentful towards the boy, and ushered them all back in the hut.  
  
"Inside and heal." She said sharply. "You can go find your friend when you aren't in danger of dying." Before they could protest any further, they were shoved, rather roughly, into the hut. She was obviously still angry over Kakashi's little 'chat'.  
  
***  
  
"Stupid old hag." Naruto muttered spitefully, kicking a stone out of his path. He had been wandering for an hour and was no longer upset by what she had said. He was pissed off. "Where does she get off judging me?" He looked around and, seeing no one, decided to sit down where he was. It wouldn't look good on him if he got so lost even his team wouldn't be able to find him. 'Like they would want to now.' He figured eventually Sasuke and Sakura would figure out where he was and would rather continue back to Konoha than go looking for him. They either hated him or feared him.  
  
"What am I going to do now?" He wondered aloud. "I could always transfer to a group that doesn't know my past, but Sakura might tell other people." He winced, giving up on that train of thought. 'Maybe I can run away.' He thought, but quickly scratched that one. 'No, they'd send hunter-nin after me.'  
  
"Don't think too hard, you'll get a headache." A voice came from behind him. Startled, Naruto jumped up and whipped around too face his would-be attacker. He hadn't even heard the tell-tale snapping of twigs.  
  
"Sakura-chan!" He exclaimed. "Gomen!" He backed away, slowly. She just flashed him a smile and sat down. Confused, he followed suit, wondering what she was up to. She began to fidget with her hands for a moment before looking Naruto in the eyes.  
  
"You didn't need to run away from us." She started. "I don't understand what it must feel like for you, but I do know you've had a hard life." The blond nodded.  
  
"Hai, demo it's nothing compared to the people who had their lives ruined by the demon."  
  
"I never noticed how modest you are. You sure don't usually act like this. You are one of those people, too, you know. I just wanted to come and get you. If I had sent Sasuke to get you you two might have gotten into a fight or something. Come back with me?" She asked. Naruto was stunned.  
  
"You're not angry? Scared? You don't want to hurt me?" He wondered, his eyes widening. She shook her head.  
  
"No, neither does Sasuke-kun. Demo, Kakashi looked like he wanted to kill that lady for insulting you."  
  
"How am I going to go back? She said she wouldn't let me in."  
  
"Kakashi had a talk with her."  
  
"I don't want people to have to be forced into things because of me. If she doesn't want me in her house then I'm not going to have other people force me in there."  
  
"Naruto-kun!" Sakura whined. "It's only for a day or two. She's a little more willing to see things from your point of view now. There's no guarantee she'll agree though. Just try it." Naruto hesitated for a second. He didn't want to give the old woman another reason to hate him, but if Sakura wanted him to come back with her... then maybe.  
  
"Fine, I'll come back." Sakura grinned and gave the boy a bear hug.  
  
"Sasuke said I should go because I'd be the one you'd listen to. I'd be the one you'd want to come after you." She explained as he stood up. He gave a hollow laugh.  
  
"He said that?" Sakura nodded. "It's not entirely true, you know. One day you're going to have to tell him that he probably could have had a hell of an easier time convincing me to come back than you did." She looked confused for a second but decided to drop it as he didn't seem to have thoughts of going any deeper into it. They turned around and headed back.  
  
***  
  
By the time they got back it was already well past dark and Sasuke was already fast asleep. Naruto hesitantly stepped into the hut, shrinking under the harsh glare of the old woman, but didn't tuck tail and run.  
  
"You better have control over that beast, or you're as good as dead, you hear?" She whispered snidely as he went to the room he'd be sharing with Sasuke. He turned around and flashed her a bright smile.  
  
"Don't worry, ma'am. The seal on my stomach will forever keep the Kyuubi inside of me. He'll never get loose." She narrowed her eyes even further.  
  
"I highly doubt that your will and that seal alone are enough to keep a wild animal like that caged for too long." He shrugged off the comment and went to his room. Closing the door as quietly as possible, Naruto crept up to his bed, not really wanting to wake up Sasuke while he was trying to heal.  
  
He glanced quickly at the sleeping boy, noticing that the curse seal was left uncovered. Frowning and trying to suppress reflexive shivers, he tossed back his own covers and crawled into bed. No need to think about that stupid ninja that forced them to come to this hut in the first place. No need to think about all the times Sasuke was nearly taken over by that curse. No need to think about the horrible way the Sharingan wheel spun a wild red when the seal took over. The bloodlust in his eyes.  
  
Naruto frowned, smacking his head. His train of thought wasn't helping much. He just wanted to go to sleep and forget about everything. He closed his eyes and within minutes was fast asleep.  
  
***  
  
A soft thrashing noise coming from beside him woke Sasuke in the middle of the night. He sat up groggily and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, waiting for himself to fully wake up. He turned to the side to find that even in his sleep, Naruto was as loud as ever. 'Why did I get stuck with him in my room?' he wondered. Focusing his eyes, he noticed that Naruto was wrapped tightly in the sheets and was struggling to move.  
  
"Onegai..." Naruto whispered as a cold sweat broke out over his forehead. He was gripped in a nightmare and couldn't wake up. Sasuke stood up from his bed and moved to kneel at Naruto's bedside. He stared down at the boy intently as he continued to struggle with his dream.  
  
"What do you dream about, Kitsune?" He whispered, unwrapping the sheet from the sleeping boy's arms.  
  
"Onegai..." Naruto repeated softly, desperation clear in his voice. "Sa- Sasuke..." The dark-haired genin fell to the floor in shock at hearing his name. He was almost positive the blond had woken up, but he shook his head. It was in the nightmare. He jumped back up and began shaking Naruto roughly, trying to wake him up.  
  
"Naruto!" He exclaimed as loud as he dared. Blue eyes opened to the darkness and for a moment he seemed disoriented. His forehead crinkled in confusion.  
  
"Sasuke?" He asked. Fear seemed to radiate off of him, and his body shifted ever so slightly away from the boy kneeling at his side. He had hoped Sasuke wouldn't notice but he did, and was intrigued by it.  
  
"Are you afraid of me?" He asked, unsure of what he really saw. Naruto's eyes widened and he shook his head furiously.  
  
"No, of course not!" He retorted. "Why should I be afraid of an idiot like you?" But the fear was still there, even if it was pushed aside. He sighed and went back to his bed, deciding to leave his questions for another time.  
  
"Whatever, dobe." He whispered, pulling the covers back over his head. The blond genin quickly fell back asleep, but Sasuke lay awake for a few more minutes thinking about Naruto's strange nightmare. He finally decided to drop the subject entirely and confront the boy only if it happened again.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well, from one story idea to another... so far I've done three out of the ten I've got planned. Oh... and if anyone can guess the old woman's secret I'll give you something really special. You can request something in your reviews if you want. (You're NOT getting my plushies though)  
  
Hint #1: It has something to do with the Kyuubi's murders  
  
Hint #2: It has something to do with Naruto, too.  
  
It will come up again later in the story though, so if you don't get it, you will eventually. 


	5. Sweet Dreams

Waha!! Someone actually got it! I thought I was too vague, but Kaosll was the first one to guess right! And that has to do with Naruto because... well there's this theory I have on Yondaime and Naruto. But all that will be revealed later in the story. As to your question about SasuNaru... well... I don't really want to jump right into it without developing the feelings, and have the reader wonder 'how the hell did she pull that off?'. Call it working to improve my writer's skills while keeping as close to the characters as I can. I can guarantee for sure that hints of the couple will pop up here and there... like when I screw up Naruto's birthday (heh heh).  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: Nothing serious in this chapter, just some SakuNaru development (trust me it will make the SasuNaru so much better) along with some SasuNaru friendship vibes. Once again, nothing 'serious'.  
  
Chapter Title: 5. Sweet Dreams  
  
In the morning, Naruto was back to his usual self and avoided Sasuke until he got the hint that the dark-haired boy wasn't going to bring up the dream again. They ate breakfast quickly before heading off again. The old woman waved goodbye but continued to shoot Naruto the coldest of stares. He pouted, but wasn't too upset over it. It wasn't like he cared about the opinions of one 'stupid old hag' anyways. He was glad that they had finally left the woman's hut. Even though they had only stayed for a day, it was one of the worst days of Naruto's life, but Sakura was okay with him harbouring the Kitsune, and Sasuke didn't seem to care much about it either, so all ended well. If only he could get rid of his stupid nightmares.  
  
They had been walking in silence for a couple of hours, but every so often the blond would catch Sasuke watching him. He knew the boy was curious about his dreams, but there was no way he'd let two of his secrets be revealed in such a short span of time.  
  
"I'm tired!" he cried, deciding to focus Sasuke's attention on something else. Kakashi didn't even flinch. He looked to Sakura and noticed she looked a little beat too. "Let's camp out, now!" he tried again. Still no reaction from Kakashi.  
  
"I'm getting a little tired, Kakashi," Sakura piped up. The sun was already beginning to set and both she and Sasuke hadn't had enough time to heal their wounds completely. Kakashi stopped and turned around, looking first from Sakura then to Naruto. He shrugged and nodded.  
  
"Sure, let's find a spot to spend the night and we'll get some sleep. It's still a good two days before we'll get back. I need to pick up something for Hokage-sama." Naruto made a face.  
  
"What does Tsunade-baba want that it'll take us two days to get?" he yelled. Kakashi ignored him. He would have continued to complain, but they had finally found a good place to camp out for the night and he wanted to get everything set up so he could finally sit for a bit. Sasuke was starting to creep him out. The boy had been staring at him for a good five minutes and Naruto refused to satisfy him by looking directly in his direction. He knew it was because of the dream and Sasuke had heard him say something, but he didn't have the faintest clue what he said. Maybe Sasuke knew. Naruto frowned, hoping he didn't know anything.  
  
They set up their sleeping bags and Sasuke and Kakashi went to look for wood while the other two stayed behind to keep watch over their stuff and look for food. Sakura walked over to the blond and looked at the small amount of berries in his hands, frowning.  
  
"You haven't been getting much sleep, ne Naruto-kun?" she said softly. He looked up at her, surprised, but didn't deny it and instead kept his mouth shut. "You shouldn't push yourself this hard." Naruto smiled at her concern and put his berries in a small pile beside the space they had cleared for the fire.  
  
"I'm okay, Sakura-chan," he exclaimed. She shook her head. "I just don't like walking for so long, ne?"  
  
"You should at least tell someone if something is wrong." She put her berries with his and sat down on her sleeping bag.  
  
"Hai, demo a shinobi is supposed to deal with duress and stress, ne? And just because I look like I'm a bit tired, doesn't mean I can't handle it. Plus, what makes you think I haven't told anyone already?" He sat down on his own bag, not noticing how defensive he was getting. She shrugged, watching him with worried eyes.  
  
"I was just trying to help, baka," she huffed and began to prepare a snack for herself. "You don't have to bite my head off, you know." Naruto was about to apologize to her when Kakashi and Sasuke came back with their wood.  
  
"Ne, Naruto-kun," Sasuke started, putting his wood in a pile. "You're getting to be lazy like Shikamaru." Naruto narrowed his eyes.  
  
"So what if I am?" he retorted. "Unlike you, he's a chuunin already!" The other boy rolled his eyes and prepared the fire.  
  
"Hai, demo he's also smart. A dobe like you can't do anything. If you got lazy, you'd turn into a vegetable."  
  
"TEME!!!" Naruto yelled and went to tackle Sasuke from behind but was caught by Kakashi.  
  
"Let's talk," he said and carried the fighting boy away from the campsite. He walked for a couple of minutes until he was sure they were out of hearing range before dropping Naruto to the ground.  
  
"First you ignore me, now you want to talk to me alone?" Naruto huffed, crossing his arms in front of his chest.  
  
"You haven't been your usual self lately," Kakashi said. "You seem to be tired." Naruto laughed.  
  
"Sakura-chan said the same thing to me just a few minutes ago." He avoided Kakashi's meaning.  
  
"Naruto, what's wrong? Why haven't you been sleeping properly?" Naruto frowned, not expecting his teacher to get straight to the point.  
  
"I have so been sleeping properly!" he argued. The jounin shook his head.  
  
"No, you haven't. I can tell. You might just end up dragging the team down if this continues." Kakashi warned, turning around and walking back to the campsite.  
  
"Who says I'm going to let it!" Naruto yelled after him. He got up and chased after the man. "It's nothing but stupid nightmares," he explained. Kakashi stopped and nodded.  
  
"And are you going to let these nightmares control you?" he asked. Naruto stuffed his hands in his pockets nervously, remembering his dreams.  
  
"It's kind of hard not to, especially when they have a possibility of becoming a reality," he said vaguely. Kakashi smiled to himself, noticing Naruto's desire to keep the subject behind his dreams hidden.  
  
"You have to confront the subject of your fears, but only do it when you're ready." He smiled at the boy and pulled out his book, Icha Icha Paradaisu, and began reading it before all the light had faded. "Or only when you get caught," he added as an afterthought, remembering his own conflict with Iruka. So far he hadn't been caught, and his fears had remained hidden.  
  
"Ne, Kakashi-sensei, you give the corniest pep talks," Naruto grinned. Kakashi ignored him and they both went back to their camp.  
  
Naruto went over to his sleeping bag, ignoring the twin looks of barely concealed interest from his team mates and picked up his bowl of food. Kakashi sat down on his sleeping bag and decided he was going to keep an extra eye on the genin for a while until he got over the nightmares. He had a feeling Sasuke knew something about the dreams too by the way the boy took an unusual interest in Naruto following their leave of the hut.  
  
"So, who wants to take the first shift?" he asked when everyone had finished their food. Sasuke and Sakura both shrugged indifferently and turned to Naruto who was waving his arm in the air enthusiastically.  
  
"I do!" he exclaimed.  
  
"Dobe, this isn't the academy, you don't need to raise your hand anymore." The dark-haired genin muttered loud enough for everyone to hear. Naruto usually hated the first shift. He often wanted to be the first one asleep, not to mention it was his idea to settle down for the night anyways. Sakura frowned at him suspiciously. Kakashi just nodded.  
  
"Okay, Naruto first, then Sakura and Sasuke last. Good night!" He grinned and dove under his covers.  
  
"Matte!" Sakura yelled. "What about you?! You can't just make us do the whole night shift!"  
  
"Yes I can and did," Kakashi retorted childishly. "Besides, I'm the one with the most expertise here. I need my beauty sleep." His snoring a couple of seconds later told them he was going to ignore them. None of them were so naïve that they believed he was actually asleep. Naruto snorted.  
  
"I bet he really does need the *beauty* sleep to fix what ever he's hiding under that mask!" he snapped, earning himself a rock in the head from both sides. "Well, it could be true," he pouted indignantly, making himself comfortable. He was planning to stay up for as long as it took to avoid people overhearing him when he muttered in his sleep. He didn't want Sakura getting any wrong ideas. Bah. How the hell could he be afraid of Uchiha? And if Sakura believed that then he'd be less respected in her eyes and Sasuke would be a hero once again.  
  
"Oyasumi!" Sakura called and snuggled into her sleeping bag. Sasuke nodded, not caring if she could see it or not and got into his own as well, making sure to sleep on the side that allowed him to watch Naruto. He wondered if the things he heard Naruto mumble in his sleep were a one time thing.  
  
***  
  
Naruto yawned for the hundredth time, scratching the side of his head sleepily. He had already passed his shift over to Sakura who had her back turned from the camp, watching the trees, but he dared not go to sleep.  
  
He blinked twice to keep himself awake, repeating in his mind that if he didn't sleep the dreams wouldn't come. They were stupid dreams anyways. So when he got over them (which really shouldn't be too long) he could catch up on his sleep then. Until they disappeared, he'd have to stay awake.  
  
"Just like Gaara had to," he mumbled to himself sadly. He shuddered remembering the dark circles under the boy's eyes. Even though it was a few years ago he still remembered the torture the sand badger put him through. He tried to hold it off, but his thoughts were making him tired reminding himself of how tired Gaara had been and nearly half an hour before Sasuke's shift began he was fast asleep and snoring. Sakura looked over her shoulder and smiled softly now that the blond had finally allowed himself to sleep. Though she'd never admit it in broad daylight he was kind of cute while he slept. Cute, in a quiet and calm sort of way.  
  
When her shift was up she stood up and stretched out her arms, letting out a big yawn. She couldn't wait to get back to sleep. Making sure her footsteps were as quiet as possible, she made her way over to Sasuke who was already sitting up in his sleeping bag.  
  
"You were awake all the time?" She asked astonished. He looked at her blankly before her face registered in his brain.  
  
"No. I'm a light sleeper. I thought you would have figured that out by now." He deadpanned sarcastically. She sweatdropped but remained silent, knowing it was futile to defend herself to him. It wasn't like he'd listen to her anyways. "Was there any disturbances?" He asked. She shook her head.  
  
"Nothing out of the ordinary except that Naruto only fell asleep half an hour ago. He couldn't keep himself awake any longer." He frowned in thought before standing up and stepping lightly out of his sleeping bag.  
  
"Okay, you can sleep now." She nodded lazily; climbing back under her warm covers and fell back asleep. Sasuke let his gaze wander to the blond genin and he watched him for a few minutes. There didn't seem to be anything wrong at the moment, and from the slight drool, Sasuke had to guess the content of the boy's dreams was food. He rolled his eyes and took up Sakura's spot watching over the camp, while keeping half an ear trained on his sleeping rival.  
  
For the next few hours Sasuke kept look out until the sky began to lighten slightly. He decided to stand up and work out the kinks in his muscles and wake the others up in the next hour or so.  
  
He was just about to add another log to the dying embers when a moan caught his attention. He whipped around, pulling out his kunai, ready to attack. His eyes scanned the campsite and came to rest on Naruto, who was tossing and turning in an apparent nightmare and the sounds had been coming from him. He quietly put away the weapon and walked over to the sleeping boy.  
  
"Onegai!" the blond cried in a hushed whisper. Sasuke was at a loss of what to do. He dropped to his knees beside his rival's head and wiped away the sweat beading there. "Please leave me alone..." He bit his lip and considered the sleeping boy's words. "Sasuke, no!" He shook his head wondering what was going on. If Naruto kept up like this he'd get loud enough to wake the others. He moved his hand from the boy's forehead to his shoulders and shook him violently.  
  
"Naruto!" He exclaimed, keeping his voice low enough to not wake Kakashi and Sakura. "Wake up, dobe!" It took him a couple of seconds, but slowly Naruto's eyes began to flutter open sleepily. They stayed blank for a couple of seconds before he recognised the boy hovering above him.  
  
"GET OFF OF ME!" He yelled and began fighting Sasuke's grip on his shoulders. Taken by surprise, the dark-haired shinobi stumbled backwards and watched in awe as Naruto ran away from the camp.  
  
"Naruto, matte!" He called out, but was paid no mind. He looked to Sakura's sleeping bag and noticed that she had been woken by their noise and decided to run after the boy to see if he could get to the bottom of Naruto's dreams. He figured he had a right to, especially since he seemed to be the topic of them, and it hurt him to know there was something about him that scared the normally unshakable boy. Or maybe it was just nothing more than nightmares. Everyone had nightmares, right? He stood up and took off after Naruto in the growing light.  
  
***  
  
Naruto pushed his way back into the camp after waiting for a couple of seconds. He watched as Sasuke tore after him, not realising that he had only done a full circle around the camp to throw him off the trail. He couldn't let himself be cornered into talking. It was too soon for him and he just needed to get over the sickening dream. When he saw Sasuke towering above him he nearly had a heart attack. Maybe he had to think about sleeping nearer Kakashi so that that face wouldn't have to be the first thing he woke up to. Not nice when he was having nightmares about the boy. He began packing up his sleeping bag, while making sure he made enough noise to fully wake up Sakura and Kakashi. He didn't want Sasuke to have the chance to take him aside and have a little 'talk' about this.  
  
He looked over to Sakura, looking thoroughly annoyed at the early wake up call and plastered on his ever-present cheerful grin, sending a loud 'Ohayo, Sakura-chan!' her way. She turned to him and scowled darkly before pulling back her covers, stifling a yawn. She splashed her face with the water beside the fire pit and went back to her own bag to follow Naruto's example, muttering curses at Naruto for being an obnoxious brat and at Kakashi for having the audacity to still be sleeping.  
  
A few minutes later Sasuke came back through the bushes, looking disappointed. Sakura rushed up to him.  
  
"Ohayo, Sasuke-kun!" She exclaimed, sounding like the blond had earlier. He looked up and caught Naruto's gaze. They watched each other for a couple of seconds before they both adverted their gaze. Naruto knew what Sasuke's eyes were asking him. Why did you run away? They practically screamed that the boy was *going* to know what was going on, even if he had to do it the hard way. The blond snorted to himself.  
  
"Not without a fight, he isn't." He muttered to himself, thankful that Kakashi had finally woken up and was ordering them about, getting ready for the rest of the trip. Naruto began yelling cheerfully, forcing the other shinobi from his mind. There was no way he'd let his dreams control him. It'd be almost as bad as if he let the Kyuubi do that. Almost.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
muahaha... Dontcha just love SasuNaru tension? 


	6. What Do You Dream?

Merry Christmas everyone. I feel that I should give some people a nice Christmas gift, and so here's the explanation of Naruto's dreams. The next chapter should be posted Sunday. Enjoy.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: Some SakuNaru development along with some SasuNaru friendship vibes. Once again, nothing 'serious'. However, this is all stuff needed for later on. You know... the real shounen ai. How else was I going to keep it in character... not that I'm doing that very effectively now...  
  
Chapter Title: 6. What Do You Dream?  
  
Sasuke shoved his hands in his pockets furiously. He was seething now that Naruto was avoiding him like the plague, *AGAIN*. For the last six hours he had tried everything he knew to get the boy alone or at least far enough away from Kakashi and Sakura to be able to get some semblance of what was wrong. No such luck and his patience was starting to wear thin. Then an opportunity presented itself to him. Kakashi was beginning to slow down.  
  
"Let's stop here for an hour and have something to eat." Their sensei exclaimed, sitting down on a nearby rock and pulling out a small bag of food. "We aren't too far from the field where the herbal plant grows."  
  
"You never told us what this stuff will be used for, anyways." Sakura piped up when they all sat down. Kakashi smiled and pulled something from one of his scroll pouches. All three of them looked at it with confusion. It was a small number of berries and leaves. Kakashi continued to look at them, expecting them to know what the herbs in his hands were. Sakura moved closer to study the berries.  
  
"Wu Wei Zu?" she asked.  
  
"Bless you." Naruto muttered grumpily, still not understanding what they were supposed to know. Sakura turned around to glare at him.  
  
"No, Wu Wei Zu."  
  
"You don't expect me to say it again, do you?" Naruto retorted. Sasuke slapped the blond on the head.  
  
"No, dobe, that's the name of the plant." But the tap had a different meaning, as Naruto saw when he looked into Sasuke's eyes. He ignored the look and returned his attention to Kakashi.  
  
"Hai!" Kakashi grinned. "It's also known as Schizandra Chinensis." Naruto rolled his eyes.  
  
"Yeah, so?" He asked bluntly. He recognised the herb from his lessons back in the academy, but they had never actually told any of them exactly what it did.  
  
"So, it's a very valuable herb." Sakura piped up, but didn't know anything else aside from that. Kakashi nodded.  
  
"The berries are said to make one look more radiant and youthful. It's also supposed to improve short and long term memory, as well as strengthening and quickening your reflexes. It can also help you deal with the stress of shinobi fighting. It's a balancer. Like the Yin and Yang put together. Plus, it makes a most relaxing tea." The group nodded.  
  
"So..." Naruto exclaimed, putting a finger to his head in thought. "This is like... a miracle plant!!" Kakashi sweatdropped.  
  
"Ano... sure." He grinned, not caring to correct the boy. Naruto returned the smile and pulled out his cup ramen, preparing it faster than normal. He looked up when he had finished one cup within a minute of it being ready to find himself the attention of all sets of eyes.  
  
"Nani?!" He yelled, wondering what they were all staring at.  
  
"Ano..." Kakashi answered. "Why are you rushing?" Naruto relaxed a bit, laughing through his full mouth.  
  
"I want to get there as soon as possible! YATTA!" He cheered enthusiastically. Kakashi shook his head bemusedly.  
  
"Hai, demo we're staying here to camp for the night. Tomorrow we'll head out to the Wu Wei Zu field."  
  
"NANI?!" Naruto cried out, dropping his second ramen cup. He looked at Sasuke for a split second and saw something like victory flash across the other boy's face, sending a shiver down his back. "But we're so close! It's so early! I'm not tired in the least!" Sasuke grunted.  
  
"You might not be, but some of us have just gotten over a rough battle." He muttered. Naruto knew he was lying and that two days was more than enough, but no one made to support Naruto's argument so he slumped his shoulders in defeat.  
  
"Fine, sure." He mumbled, unhooking his bag from his back. He knew he was beaten, but this time he would make sure Sasuke couldn't figure anything out. No sleep at all! That and avoiding the dark-haired genin as long as possible.  
  
"Because I'm stuck here, I demand that Kakashi take my shift!" He yelled, unfurling his sleeping bag immediately. Maybe if he went to bed quicker, they would leave him alone.  
  
"Iie!" Kakashi exclaimed. "I'll take a shift, demo you still have to keep watch. How bout me, then Sasuke, followed by Sakura and Naruto, okay?" He proposed. Everyone shrugged. Naruto grumbled, but had to follow his previous actions or else look stupid, something of which he was trying to stop. He climbed into his sleeping bag and snuggled deep into the warmth of the blankets.  
  
"Naruto?" Sakura asked, but the boy ignored her, feigning sleep. "Ne, it's not even ten minutes past dusk yet, baka!" They left Naruto alone until they decided to go to sleep, starting with Kakashi's night shift.  
  
***  
  
Kakashi let out a yawn. He'd been up for three hours since the other two went to sleep and it was about time to wake Sasuke for his turn. Standing up silently, he glanced to the still form of the blond genin and sighed to himself. Naruto may be good at illusions, but it was obvious that the boy was still awake. He walked over to Sasuke's bed to wake him up. He placed a hand over the boy's shoulder to still him for a second, knowing that he would awake quickly. Sasuke's eyes slowly fluttered open, but he remained motionless.  
  
"Keep an eye on him." Kakashi whispered into the boy's ear. "He's just about ready to fall asleep, and I'm worried about him." Sasuke was stunned at the confession, but nodded, sitting up in his sleeping bag.  
  
While the silver-haired jounin went to his own sleeping bag, Sasuke got up and moved to sit by Naruto's head. He looked down at his rival and noticed the tell-tale twitching of his head that made it obvious the boy was fighting off the inevitable sleep. He smirked to himself, knowing it was only a matter of minutes before he'd fall asleep.  
  
He sat back against the nearest tree and folded his arms against his chest, making sure to follow Kakashi's advice. He was curious to know just what it was that was keeping Naruto's dreams in such a state. He'd just have to wait until morning, when they were alone.  
  
It wasn't until almost ten minutes before the end of Sasuke's shift that Naruto's nightmare came back. Sasuke had been snoozing lightly, but the sound of whimpering quickly woke him up. He looked down at the boy to find his normally peaceful features knotted with fear and pain.  
  
'Baka, Naruto!' He thought to himself. 'Why did you have to wait until the end of my shift?!' But Naruto couldn't hear his thoughts and continued to fight off his dream.  
  
***  
  
Naruto could feel the same dream closing around him as the scenery turned from bright blue to a horrible sickly red and black. He knew what was going on, he knew it was just a dream, but the harder he fought it, the harder it was to wake up.  
  
"Naruto..." A voice hissed from within the shadows. He shivered, tensing up. "You're nothing but a bastard child. The demon fox. You need to be tamed." Naruto turned around to face the voice but it suddenly came from a new direction.  
  
"You need to be purified." It hissed. He shook his head, trying to ignore the voice. "You've hurt me. You've hurt everyone. I will make you pay for that. You are just as horrible as the demon. You, Naruto. The boy, not the fox. You are on my list." Naruto was shaking, but he pulled out a kunai to defend himself with.  
  
"I will kill you." The dark voice hissed right behind him. "You are a loser, a dimwit, an idiot."  
  
"Baka!" Naruto screamed, trying to calm himself down. "You could never defeat me. You tried that already once, never worked. Onegai, stop this." His voice began to become more intimidated. Suddenly a sharp pain hit him in the side and the inky red darkness began to swirl in an all too familiar symbol. He staggered to one knee, holding his side.  
  
"Kakashi!" He cried out for help.  
  
"Your friends cannot save you from this nightmare; it's just you and me, now." The voice laughed and finally came into view in front of him. Naruto knew already who it was, regardless of the long dark cape wrapped ominously around the figure.  
  
"Onegai, please don't do this. Sakura!" He tried again. His friends would help. They'd save him from his nightmare, wouldn't they? "Onegai... Sasuke... please stop this... itai... Sasuke!" He whispered calling out to his friend. The voice laughed again.  
  
"I don't see anyone coming to get you, Naruto-chan." The voice sneered, stepping closer to Naruto and kneeling in front of the boy. He lifted the blond's chin with his finger and smirked. "I have sworn to kill you, dobe." He hissed, his eyes flaring a bright Sharingan red, face almost unrecognisable by the curse seal. Almost. A stabbing pain shot through the blond's heart as a kunai lodged itself into his back. Naruto screamed.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke stumbled back when Naruto began screaming, and only quick thinking got him to silence it with his hand, roughly shaking the boy by his shoulders. The blond's eyes shot open and he looked at Sasuke for a fraction of a second before going completely ballistic.  
  
Sasuke still had one hand covering his mouth and one hand firmly holding down his shoulders and his face was barely visible in the flickering light of the fire. Naruto fought with the hands and tried to bolt again, but was tackled from behind before he could get anywhere.  
  
"Sasuke, get off me!" Naruto hissed angrily, trying to fight off the hands that secured his wrists above his head in the dirt.  
  
"Not until you tell me what the hell is going on in those dreams of yours." Sasuke retorted in an equally low voice. Naruto refused to give up the fight, being as stubborn as he was, but Sasuke was not going to move until he got his answer. He sighed, letting his muscles relax a bit.  
  
"Tell me." Sasuke demanded. Naruto looked away, frowning. "What do you dream about? What are you so afraid of?"  
  
"I dream about..." Naruto trailed off, before looking Sasuke in the eyes. "You."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Wahaha... it took me so long to get into the mood of this chapter. Very well, then. That's it for now. See ya Sunday! 


	7. Fear Thy Friend

I have to thank Japime gurl for her review. She asked me a question that sparked something in me and the answer now is YES! The dreams weren't supposed to mean anything past this one storyline, but I've found a way to incorporate them into a part later on in the story because of your question. Muahaha... so now they do matter... THANKS!! (smirks as the readers moan)  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: Some SakuNaru development along with some SasuNaru friendship vibes. Once again, nothing 'serious'. However, this is all stuff needed for later on. You know... the real shounen ai. How else was I going to keep it in character... not that I'm doing that very effectively now...  
  
Chapter Title: 7. Fear Thy Friend  
  
Sasuke was shocked by the admission, to say the least. He wasn't surprised that he was the subject of fear in the boy's dreams, but he never really wanted it to be true. They were supposed to have an understanding. Neither would call it friendship, but the bonding was there. The trust was there.  
  
"But why?" He asked, after regaining his composure. Naruto turned his head away again, not trusting his voice if he stared too long.  
  
"You scare me, Sasuke." He muttered. "Do you remember the way you looked at Itachi? At Orochimaru when he left your body? At me on the roof? It's one of the most terrifying things to look into your eyes and see, not the boy you are, but the monster you could be come." Sasuke flinched, but kept a firm, almost painful grip on Naruto's wrists. "It's the Sharingan, and it's the curse seal. I'm afraid of that look. I'm afraid of being the *target* of that hatred, because it's not you. It's that curse." Sasuke shook his head in denial.  
  
"No, I'd never look at you like-"  
  
"You did." Naruto interrupted. "Do you remember the time a few years ago when you challenged me on the roof. I saw the wheel spinning. You looked at me with so much hatred because I had supposedly surpassed you." He turned his head back to look up at Sasuke.  
  
"Gomen nasai." He apologized, but Naruto ignored him.  
  
"In my dream you were in the shadows of blood and darkness. You whispered that I was nothing but a demon that needed to be tamed. You were going to save me. Purify me. You wanted revenge on me for hurting you, for hurting everyone. You called me all sorts of names, which I never would have taken seriously, if it weren't for the blood thirst in your eyes. And then you..." He trailed off. Sasuke was stunned by the dream, and from the way that the boy trailed off, could predict for himself how it ended.  
  
"I killed you?" He asked softly. Naruto closed his eyes tightly, remembering the pain and nodded.  
  
"You stabbed me in the back." Sasuke frowned.  
  
"You know I'd never-" Once again he was cut off by Naruto.  
  
"But you would have!" He yelled, thankfully they weren't loud enough to wake anyone, even though Sasuke was sure Kakashi was lying awake, listening to their conversation. "When you left with Orochimaru you betrayed me... the village. You willingly went with them, knowing they would use you to hurt us. If I hadn't gone after you, you'd probably have done it again. You're a spoiled brat!"  
  
Sasuke lowered his head, letting his bangs cover his face. He knew most of what Naruto was saying was true, and decided against defending himself.  
  
"I know it means nothing to you, but I will never turn against you, and I'm sorry for the things I did in the past." Sasuke exclaimed softly. Naruto nodded. "But you have to know, I'm not going to promise you I'll get rid of the look altogether." The blond offered a smile.  
  
"Ne, of course not!" He chuckled, something that took a lot of energy as Sasuke was still sitting on his chest. "You've still got to help me kill Orochimaru and Itachi!" His rival tried and failed to fight the small smirk that graced his features.  
  
"Help *you*?" He asked incredulously. "You've got to be kidding me." Naruto closed his eyes, relaxing his whole body beneath Sasuke's.  
  
"Fine then." He muttered softly. "You can watch from the sidelines." Sasuke grunted in annoyance and pushed himself off of the blond, ignoring the hand extended, asking for help.  
  
"Get up yourself, dobe." He walked back into the camp to finish off Sakura's shift, ignoring Naruto's stream of colourful curses. "Oh and by the way," he called over his shoulder without turning around. "You still have the next shift."  
  
***  
  
The next morning, with a couple of hits to the head from Sakura, the hyperactive blond ninja got everyone up. Naruto had the misfortune of waking Sakura from the 'most wonderful dream of Sasuke' and being on the receiving end of her wake-up routine. He was rubbing his head sorely when they finally made it to the Wu Wei Zu garden. It was extremely vast and looked almost like a carpet of berries.  
  
"Collect as much of the plant as possible to bring back." Kakashi nodded to them. "I think Tsunade-hime is going to need a lot to deal with the war." Naruto's eyes widened. For the last year or so it hadn't been obvious the war was even still going on and to be honest, Naruto had practically forgotten about the whole thing. Tensions between the Sand and Leaf and Sound were high but after the third died, the other villages decided to lay low and scope out the new Hokage.  
  
"When are we going to do some A-class missions for the village?" Sakura asked, eager to help out. Kakashi shrugged, picking some berries.  
  
"I have no clue, but I have a feeling it won't be too long now. You may still be mere genins, but soon even Konohamaru's class will be helping with the war, and they've only just graduated from the academy." Naruto frowned, shaking his head. He'd been on some tough missions of his own and most of the time had barely made it out with his head. He didn't want Sakura to go rushing into battle without any experience. He'd never forgive himself if she got hurt like the last time.  
  
"This war should be fought by people with the experience to handle the situation." He said bluntly, bending over to grab a fistful of plants.  
  
"Like you?" Sakura retorted angrily. For all of his suffering he really was an insensitive jerk.  
  
"Yeah! Like me. I've been out there and barely escaped with my life. You barely made it out alive from this mission." Sakura glowered a bright pink, narrowing her eyes at the boy.  
  
"And just how the hell did *YOU* get your experience?! By fighting and doing those missions!" Kakashi held up his hands between the two.  
  
"In case you two have forgotten you are not enemies." He exclaimed. "Sakura, Naruto meant well. He's only looking out for your safety. And Naruto, Sakura is a ninja. You can't try and be hero for her forever." Sasuke snorted.  
  
"Key word is *TRY*, Dobe." He muttered. "I sure don't think you're a hero." Naruto growled, jumping after the boy. He was stopped by Kakashi.  
  
"TEME! Just you watch, one day I'm going to save your ass, and you'll be down on your knees kissing my feet." Sasuke laughed, which was surprising. Everyone looked at him with shock written all over their faces. "Nani?!" Naruto yelled angrily.  
  
"If you ever do save my life, I'll be sure to remember this." Sasuke grinned. "Of course this isn't a bet, because I save you every other day, so it wouldn't count." Naruto growled under his breath but continued picking the berries. Sakura and Kakashi looked at each other and smiled, knowing things were back in order, and continued collecting their own.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
I figure someone's got to figure out what I'm trying to do, but I'll say it anyways. I'm doing what I can to offer my own solutions to the problems in the Naruto manga, meaning I'm going to deal with everything that needs dealing with. (Eg. Kyuubi's secret. Everyone needed to know about it, so... I made it a point to tell em.) Of course I'm only one person, and there are only so many things I can think of to solve, plus I've covered the main ones such as Naruto vs the Kyuubi, Dealing with Naruto's pointless crush on Sakura and Orochimaru. Yeah!! I actually find a way to... "handle" him. Of course, at the moment I can't quite remember how I do it. Heh...  
  
Review and tell me what other things should be solved (eg. Sasuke dealing with Itachi, etc.) and I'll tell you (If I can) whether I am using it or if I've forgotten it. (Warning: I've just remembered, I forgot the ultimate battle between Sasuke and Naruto... heh... but hopefully what I've substituted it with will be sufficient enough.)  
  
Oh, and gomen nasai for the short chapter. Hopefully the next chapter will make up for it in some way. 


	8. Sleepless Nights

I WAS RIGHT!!! Kiba's gonna go up against that woman and leave Tayuya with Sasuke's coffin!! I can't believe I got that... eerie. Oh well, at least since I'm not too far ahead I can still incorporate the "Heaven" seal into things, too bad about Kimimarou though... that and my weird thing that everyone with blond hair is Yondaime... ... and if Kimimarou IS Yondaime... (It'd explain why there are no Uzumaki clan) I'm going to kill someone.  
  
Oh, and I hope this somewhat satisfies your cravings for some SasuNaru action.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru... a little later on... SakuNaru (don't hate me...it's for all those of you who want to bash Sakura... trust me you'll like this... even though I don't like bashing her, there'll come a chapter when you'll ALL want to bash her)  
  
Chapter Title: 8. Sleepless Nights  
  
Sasuke sighed again, retracing his steps once again. He didn't like pacing, but there wasn't anything else he could do. He could *TRY* going back to sleep, but his insomnia was the reason he was up so late in the first place. Almost two years had passed from the day Sasuke made his bet with Naruto and, although their missions had been a lot harder, with more fighting, Naruto had yet to REALLY save Sasuke's life, but that promise was one of the furthest things from his mind. He didn't know why but he had a really weird feeling, almost like he had forgotten something. He went over the checklist in his mind once again. No, he'd given Sakura her birthday present a good two months ago. He'd done all of his missions, and filled out the reports. He'd even made sure Naruto had handed in all of his. So what was missing? He looked at the calendar and sighed. He knew June 23rd was circled for a reason, but it was Naruto's writing and he couldn't make out the chicken-scratch kanji to save his live.  
  
'Wait a minute.' He thought to himself. 'K'so. How could I have forgotten my own birthday?' he wondered for a moment before shrugging. He didn't really care about it, but everyone else was always making such a big deal about turning sixteen he must have adopted the same anxiety subconsciously. He slumped back into bed thinking that he could go back to sleep, but was sadly mistaken. He lay there for a good fifteen minutes before cursing.  
  
"Shimatta!" He stood up and got dressed. There was no way he'd get to sleep like this. He had to go see Naruto. He was the only thing he could think of that would help him sleep, after all, even the most steadfast shinobi could get tired just watching the blond bounce around. He pulled back the blinds on his window and jumped out of the window, into the night.  
  
***  
  
The thunder rolled in the distance warning the villagers of the impending storm, but Sasuke ignored it, continuing to jump from roof top to roof top towards Naruto's house. He paused on one roof to catch his breath and listen to the rumbling of the last lightning jolt fade into the next boom. He frowned to himself, knowing the storm was fast approaching, but continued ahead. He just had to be quick about it. He wasn't even sure if Naruto was going to be awake. Nearly the whole village was already asleep, with only the guarding ninjas still watching over the village.  
  
He landed on the tree right outside Naruto's window and stepped lightly onto the sill of the already open window pane. Crouching slightly, he stared absentmindedly at the figure asleep in the bed. Naruto was tangled in the blankets with his night cap hanging over his face and an arm and a leg dangling over the edge of his bed. He smiled at the sight and continued to gaze at his favourite enigma. He leaned against the pane and was about to rest his chin on one hand when the clearing of someone's throat caught his attention and nearly caused him to fall from the window.  
  
"Are you going to stare all day?" Naruto's voice came from a darkened corner in the room. He stepped into the moonlight, wearing nothing but a pair of black boxers, and looked at his clone, tilting his head slightly. He studied his face for a second before turning back to Sasuke. "I don't see what's so special about it." He whispered. Sasuke turned back to the bed to find that the jutsu had worn off leaving the original Naruto standing in front of him. He blinked, startled that he had fallen for such a simple trick, before he realized that Naruto had also caught him staring. He shrugged in response.  
  
"I couldn't sleep." He muttered. Naruto cocked an eyebrow at him and crossed his arms as if to say 'Yeah, so?' but let him continue. "So I wanted to do something that might make me a little more tired... like sparring. And since everyone else is asleep..." He trailed off. Naruto snorted.  
  
"Hai, didn't you think for one minute that *I* could be asleep, too?" Naruto retorted, sliding back into his snide attitude from the earlier years. "After all, it's nearly midnight!"  
  
"I figured you wouldn't mind as much as other people, since you live for training, too." He turned around on the windowsill and dropped back onto the tree below. "But since you do mind, then I'll leave." Then he dropped out of sight and began retracing his jumps across the roves and treetops back to his house.  
  
"NANI?!" Naruto shouted when Sasuke disappeared and ran to the window. He hadn't meant to chase Sasuke away with his sarcasm. Pulling his orange pants over his boxers, he lunged out of his window after Sasuke, practically throwing himself from branch to branch in order to get ahead of Sasuke and finally he managed to. He jumped down in front of the boy just as he was about to make another leap into a different tree and grabbed him by the ankle, causing both to tumble the few feet to the soft grass below.  
  
"Oof!" Naruto exclaimed loudly, feeling a heavy weight fall on top of him, causing him to exhale and lose his breath. He closed his eyes, knowing Sasuke had landed on top of him and waited for a few minutes to catch his breath, knowing that he'd be aware if Sasuke decided to run away again. Unfortunately, Sasuke didn't move an inch and seemed to be dazed by the sudden fall. He didn't even know how he ended up on the grass.  
  
He looked down and found Naruto beneath him, a look of pain washed across his face, sealing his eyes shut. Both were panting hard and Sasuke decided to follow Naruto's example and take a quick break. He rolled off the blond boy slightly and rested his head on Naruto's chest.  
  
"When I said that, I didn't mean I didn't want to spar with you." Naruto muttered. Sasuke nodded, smiling slightly at the fact that Naruto had easily caught up to him. Naruto just might end up making Sasuke eat his words. Quickly rolling the tenseness out of his shoulders, he pushed himself away from the blonde and stood up, offering a hand. Naruto, as expected, swatted the hand away and pulled himself up, brushing the dirt from his pants. He looked around, noticing that there was no one around for a while who would be awakened by their fighting.  
  
"What are you waiting for, Dobe?" Sasuke smirked, sliding his body into its normal sparring stance. He knew that the nickname would spur the boy into acting and he wasn't disappointed. Without hesitation, Naruto snarled at the name and swung his leg around suddenly, starting their duel. Sasuke ducked the limb, but was surprised as the blonde's fist caught him on the way down.  
  
They continued fighting, never letting the other get in too many good hits, until the clouds decided they had held the rain for far too long. Within seconds, both boys were completely drenched, and Naruto was only in his pants. Sasuke leaned over his knees, breathing hard, and Naruto let himself fall backwards into the wet grass with his arms spread out to accept all the rain pelting down on him. He looked to the side and frowned.  
  
"Ne, Sasuke-kun." He whispered. Sasuke sat down in the grass and looked up at the boy. He shook his head futilely trying to rid his hair of the water, but the black strands just fell limply and clung to the side of his face. "Why else did you come to me?"  
  
"I don't know." Sasuke answered. "I couldn't sleep, haven't been able to for a few days and I guess I thought you were the first person I wanted to see." Naruto nodded smiling.  
  
"Nightmares?"  
  
"Iie. Something else. I feel uneasy."  
  
"Maybe it's because your birthday is tomorrow."  
  
"Hai, maybe." Sasuke frowned, not truly believing that. He yawned suddenly and his eyes began to droop. "I also didn't want to be stuck by myself in that house any longer. That's the only thing giving me nightmares." Naruto chuckled hollowly.  
  
"You should stay with me for a few days."  
  
"And give you the chance to kill me in my sleep?"  
  
"Teme." Naruto muttered. "Fine then, how about just for tonight?" Sasuke nodded, smiling.  
  
"Sure, just for tonight. We've got a mission tomorrow, though. It would be good for you to get up early for a change." Naruto scoffed, but couldn't deny he'd been getting lazier over the last two years. He was tired. Orochimaru had sent dozens more warnings to, not only Naruto, but the other four ninjas who stood in his way. And all of them were expected to handle the death threats along with their missions, which was beginning to its toll on Naruto.  
  
"You need to come over more often." Naruto added. "Then we'd both be less lonely." Naruto yawned and closed his eyes. Sasuke looked up from the blade of grass he was twiddling between his fingers to the boy, fast asleep in the rain. He studied the Naruto's face for a couple of seconds before picking him up in his arms and walking back to Naruto's apartment. He frowned at his limp form, noting that he was really light.  
  
'Naruto, you need to eat some REAL food for a change.' He mused to himself when he got there and placed him in a chair, quickly changing his clothes into something drier and pulling out a pair of shorts and a t-shirt for himself from Naruto's half open drawer. 'And clean up after yourself.' He sighed before shutting said drawer with his hip. After he changed and put their wet clothes over the shower curtain, he carried the sleeping child to bed and climbed in himself. They had done it so many times he rarely even thought about it anymore. Rarely.  
  
"Oyasumi, Naruto." He whispered out to the darkness, before closing his eyes and falling into a light sleep. The best one he'd had in a long time.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
This beginning has been in my head for a long time and only now is it finally being posted. YATTA! Of course all the Naruto lovers (of the boy, not the manga/anime) are going to hurt me when they get to chapter 14. Gomen nasai.  
  
So was that good enough to satisfy all you shounen ai lovers? Of course, there's a lot more to come, and as you can see... Sasuke's falling for Naruto first.  
  
Oh, and Omedetou Tanjoubi Konohamaru! (Dec 30th) 


	9. Happy Birthday, Sasuke'kun!

To Nikkler (and everyone): This story WILL be a YAOI one... eventually. Which means the rating WILL go up... to R

Also, about the whole chapter 14 thing... I'm surprised that Naruto's some people's fave character... I thought I was the only one... - But of course... since he's my fave character too, I will let him get over the... "event" with help from Sasuke, of course.

And the last thing: I don't understand how people can believe in a SasuSaku pairing. Sure, one-sided, but Sasuke doesn't even TALK to Sakura, and sure she may be his only chance at restoring his clan... and sure she may have feelings for him, but the last thing I remember him saying to her was "You make me sick"... which was the same thing she said to Naruto after them two kissed. Not that I think SasuSaku lovers should DIE... but... pukes over the side of her comp

Title: Jaded

Series: Naruto

Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)

Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)

Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)

Pairings: SasuNaru... a little later on... SakuNaru (don't hate me...it's for all those of you who want to bash Sakura... trust me you'll like this... even though I don't like bashing her, there'll come a chapter when you'll ALL want to bash her)

Chapter Title: 9. Happy Birthday, Sasuke-kun!

Sakura walked a couple of steps behind Kakashi through the halls of Naruto's apartment. It was one of the few days that the teacher had been on time and not only had Naruto not shown up, but Sasuke was missing as well. They had gone to his house first to find it completely empty and were on their way to Naruto's to see if he had seen Sasuke since yesterday. Maybe he knew something, and if he didn't then she was going to drag his ass all over Konoha just to find him. Kakashi stopped at the boy's apartment and let Sakura do the knocking. Neither of them, it seemed, expected Sasuke to answer the door, but what they got was even more surprising.

Not only did Sasuke come to Naruto's door, but he was wearing nothing but a pair of loose fitting black shorts, a towel around his neck and a pink apron hanging off his shoulders. He opened the door with one hand and in the other held a grease-caked spatula. Sakura almost had to hold her jaw up with her hands. Kakashi looked at the boy stunned for a minute before smirking beneath his mask. He was cooking Naruto breakfast. That's when the implications of the sight began to go through Sakura's mind too and she stopped drooling. Sasuke, standing there, half-naked, cooking Naruto breakfast... not a good thing in her eyes.

"Morning, Sakura, Kakashi." He nodded to them both before stepping aside to let them both in. He didn't realise what they both were thinking.

"What are you doing over here?" Kakashi asked before Sakura could get her bearings. Sasuke looked down and blushed finally realising. Luckily for him, Naruto popped his head out at that moment.

"Morning, Sakura-chan!" He cried enthusiastically.

"Morning Naruto." Came his dreary reply. He grinned, regardless and answered Sasuke's question.

"Sasuke's here because I invited him over last night for a little bit of sparring and he ended up staying over the whole night." Kakashi nodded.

"And your clothes?" Sasuke nearly growled at the feral smirk hidden by the mask but clearly present in his eyes.

"In case you forgot, Kakashi-sensei, it rained last night. Even I know not to go to sleep in wet clothes." Naruto retorted. "Ne, Sasuke-kun, what are you cooking?" Sasuke ignored his teacher's grin and looked to Naruto.

"You wouldn't wake up in time, dobe, so I figured if you smelled real food you'd wake up properly." Naruto narrowed his eyes at the insult, but ran into the kitchen for his food anyways. The rest of them followed him.

"We've got another mission today, but it wasn't given directly to us by Tsunade." Kakashi started, sitting down opposite the hungry blond. "She's been busy with the A-class missions and dealing with the minor attacks on Konoha. We're to go to the Hokage monument and pick up a package that's to be delivered to Sound." He paused, watching both Sasuke and Naruto shiver at the mention of the village. While Naruto continued eating as if nothing had happened, Sasuke remained tense. "It's a B class mission and our team was requested specifically." He frowned. No one was ever requested by team, but he pushed aside his suspicions and told his team the rest of the details.

"Ne, Sound has a bad reputation." Naruto exclaimed through mouthfuls of bacon. Kakashi nodded. Naruto was covering up for his unease. Although he didn't know what happened in the Hidden Sound when Naruto-tachi were sent after Sasuke, but he knew none of the boys liked the place afterwards, and they all tensed at the mention of the place.

"Okay, when you're finished, both of you get ready and we'll head out." He ordered and Naruto put his plate in the sink to clean off later.

In his room, Sasuke stayed at the door.

"Arigato for not telling them about my insomnia." He mumbled. Naruto turned around startled. "I didn't want Sakura to know that I was lonely. She'd just start hanging off me even more." Naruto chuckled.

"Hai, demo it's none of their business in the first place, plus it's not as though I lied to them, ne?" He grinned and tossed Sasuke his now dry clothes. Sasuke nodded deftly and changed.

"So did you figure out what the unease was about?" Naruto asked when they had finished getting dressed. Sasuke shook his head.

"Demo, did you see Kakashi when he mentioned us getting chosen. I don't think that's a good thing." Naruto scoffed, laughing good-naturedly.

"Iie! It's because they've heard how wonderful our team is, thanks to me!" He boasted. "I am, after all, THE Uzumaki Naruto. I'm going to be the future Rokudaime! That means I'm practically royalty!" Sasuke couldn't help but laugh at how idiotic the blonde was being. They both walked out of the room to meet Sakura's weird stares. She apparently was still suspicious about what had gone on between the two the night before.

"Happy Birthday, Sasuke-kun!" She exclaimed, ignoring her thoughts. She had only just remembered the stoic boy's birthday was that day and mentally kicked herself for forgetting. "I can't believe you're sixteen already! It's such a great age!" Sasuke frowned at her.

"You're sixteen already too." He dead-panned. "What's so special about this day that makes it different from any other birthday?" She shrugged.

"I don't know, but supposedly sixteen is when you're closer to becoming an adult." He rolled his eyes.

"And tomorrow I'll be even closer, but you won't celebrate it, so today is just another pointless birthday." He growled and pushed his way past her out the door. Naruto followed him, smiling apologetically to the girl.

"I think he either woke up on the wrong side or has a birthday stick permanently stuck up his ass." Sakura smiled weakly at his remark, but didn't comment on his rudeness. They both followed Sasuke out the front door towards Kakashi who was waiting for them to head to the Hokage monument to pick up their package.

(Star)(Star)(Star

Halfway there, Naruto began to notice the unusual quiet that had befallen the village that morning. The streets were empty and the shops were all closed. It could almost be considered a ghost town. Where were all the people? He was about to voice his concerns when Kakashi held them back, tensing. They all looked around but saw nothing suspicious beyond the unerring quiet. Kakashi suddenly turned his gaze skyward as six ninjas jumped in on them from the high rooftops. They all immediately went into their fighting stances, noting the sound forehead protectors the shinobi wore.

"K'so." Naruto whispered, curling his lip angrily. At his voice the ninja began to attack mercilessly in what soon seemed like a losing battle as Sasuke felt arms encircle his own, pinning them to his side. He was about to turn his head to his attacker when a movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. A kunai was headed straight for his face and he couldn't move.

(End of Chapter)

Yeah, I know it's a stupid place to leave off, and not much of a cliff-hanger, but I didn't want it to be so short... not that that little scene changed much.

Also, I know I only posted the last one yesterday, but... - I like posting, so yeah... I guess the next one will be posted... lets say Sunday.


	10. Revenge on Naruto'tachi

I promised a friend of mine I'd post this chapter when she finally got to chapter 9... and if she took longer than to Sunday I'd just post anyways... well here it is. Thank Cat for getting her butt in gear... well my little form of torture helped as well... oh and enjoy my little teaser at the bottom.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru... a little later on... SakuNaru (don't hate me...it's for all those of you who want to bash Sakura... trust me you'll like this... even though I don't like bashing her, there'll come a chapter when you'll ALL want to bash her) and very vague hintings of a JiOro past.  
  
Chapter Title: 10. Revenge on Naruto-tachi  
  
Sasuke sighed in relief as the man behind him fell dead behind him. He looked down to see the kunai buried in the man's forehead.  
  
"Shimatta, Sasuke!" A loud voice erupted from behind him. "I thought you were never going to duck your head." He turned back around to frown at Naruto. He would have retorted, but there were still five other jounin shinobis attacking them and they were outnumbered. Even though Sakura was retaining injuries on her arms, she remained standing and fought beside Kakashi who was shielding her from the worst of blows.  
  
Another kunai was headed towards their silver-haired sensei and Sasuke was about to cry out a warning when two poofs later the kunai was embedded in the neared tree and Iruka was standing behind him, holding onto their sensei tightly and grinning broadly.  
  
"Need some help?" He wondered idly, pitching in himself. Naruto smirked at his old sensei's arrival and performed his own specialty jutsu.  
  
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" He yelled, bringing up another five clones to help with the fight. Clearly outnumbered, the Sound shinobi disappeared, causing Naruto to groan in frustration.  
  
"I wish they'd just leave us alone." He muttered putting away his kunai. Sasuke nodded in agreement.  
  
"Actually, these ninjas aren't here as a warning to you two." Iruka smiled apologetically. "Orochimaru's taken over Tsunade-hime's office, looking for Sasuke-san and the whole village has been put on alert to avoid these ninjas if possible. Tsunade-tachi are back at Naruto's house waiting for us." He explained. "I was sent to find you before you got too far." Kakashi frowned, narrowing his one visible eye.  
  
"So, the mission?" He wondered. Iruka shrugged.  
  
"I don't recall you getting a mission."  
  
"Ah, must have been Orochimaru trying to lure us to him."  
  
"He's not that stupid, Kakashi-san." Iruka stated. Kakashi nodded, putting a hand on the Chuunin's shoulder.  
  
"Hai, demo it was worth a shot, ne?"  
  
***  
  
"Orochimaru's not just after Sasuke's body anymore, Naruto-kun." Choji said, fidgeting with his hands nervously. Shikamaru placed a calming palm over his best friend's and smiled gently. When they returned Naruto found his whole house ransacked, tables and chairs thrown everywhere and Tsunade- sama in the middle of it all, standing beside most of the genin that had gone to the chuunin exams; including Lee and Hinata. "He's after us, too. We ruined his plans for Sasuke and he wants our heads." Choji was slightly edgy because he didn't like the idea of facing a new and improved Orochimaru. Sasuke sighed and sat down on the good side of Naruto's torn mattress.  
  
"So why does he think he can just come in here and tear my house apart?!" Naruto raged, kicking a broken lamp to the side.  
  
"He was looking for Sasuke-san." Tsunade said bluntly. Naruto turned to her and rolled his eyes.  
  
"No kidding, Tsunade-baba." He spat. "Demo, I'm ten times more powerful than *him*," he pointed his thumb in Sasuke's general direction. Tsunade nodded, moving some of Naruto's dirty laundry out of the way so she could sit down on the floor.  
  
"Hai, demo he doesn't know it the way Itachi does." Everyone was speechless. None of the genin knew about Itachi's return until then.  
  
"Honto ne?" Shikamaru was the first to speak. "You'd never think, from looking at him, that Naruto held more power than Sasuke." Jiraiya chuckled, stepping in through a broken window.  
  
"Hai, you wouldn't, demo Orochimaru doesn't see that in him. He sees Sasuke's Sharingan. He's always been the stubborn one. Plus, I've noticed that team seven are much like our old team. Sakura... somewhat like Tsunade, although hopefully less of a gambler; Naruto like myself; and in Sasuke, Orochimaru sees the child prodigy he once was." He smiled in remembrance. "If Orochimaru sees in Naruto the child I once was then he's going to hate him, which he already does." He paused, looking like he was going to add something, but thought better of it.  
  
"So what are we going to do to get rid of the snake?" Tsunade spat angrily, not liking for one bit the feeling of being trapped by the man's coils. The sennin shrugged loosely.  
  
"I saw a bunch of men out patrolling the streets on my way over. They have orders to capture Sasuke and *kill* Naruto. He's a wanted man." He snickered childishly, ignoring the serious looks of the rest of the people. "Orochimaru is angry that he brought Sasuke home, demo it would seem that he wants revenge on Naruto more than he wants Sasuke. I think it's because he's closest to Sasuke-san and has the biggest chance of ruining his plans." Naruto grinned.  
  
"Ne, he respects me?" Jiraiya grinned. At least one person wasn't as tense as the rest of them. He truly was like him.  
  
"Maybe." At this, the blond's eyes lit up and he had to fight to keep a grin from spreading across his face.  
  
***  
  
About half an hour later Naruto was pacing his bedroom floor while everyone else tried to think of a plan to get rid of the Sound shinobi. The blond wasn't taking the tension very well and wanted to go out and fight.  
  
"Naruto, stop that!" Sakura yelled at him. He looked up to her and frowned, but ignored her request. They weren't coming up with anything useful, so he was left on his own to figure out a plan. Not to mention, the ninjas outside were beginning to search inside houses and soon they'd be at his door unless they did something quickly.  
  
"Screw this." He muttered to himself and opened one of the unbroken windows carefully. This attracted everyone's attention and they all stood at once thinking it to be an intruder.  
  
"Naruto, shut that damn window!" Sakura yelled. "The ninja will see us!"  
  
"Shimatta, they'll also hear you being so loud." Naruto retorted, standing on the window ledge.  
  
"Where are you going?" Tsunade and Sasuke demanded at the same time, while Jiraiya lowered his head with a sigh. They all turned to him for an explanation.  
  
"Good luck, Naruto-kun." He whispered and the blond nodded in acknowledgement. The group looked collectively confused for a moment before it dawned in Sasuke's eyes.  
  
"Iie!" He yelled, running up to grab Naruto by the arm and pulled him back inside. "You're not going out there!" The blond tugged his arm free of Sasuke's grasp and turned back to the window.  
  
"Hai, I am. You asses are just sitting around here doing nothing while those Sound ninjas get even closer. Maybe I can buy you guys some time, because I know I'm not being much help as I am."  
  
"Naruto, you can't go out there! You're outnumbered hundreds to one!" Sakura exclaimed, joining Sasuke in trying to pull Naruto from the window, but the boy was set in his ways. He growled and fought them off, dashing to the opening and performing his notorious Kage Bunshin.  
  
"Wait!!" They all yelled, trying to catch him but half of his clones had already taken off among the village and one remained to look at the room's occupants sadly.  
  
"What's the point of wanting to become Hokage if I'm not willing to die to protect the people in the village?" He asked. "Oh, and happy birthday, Sasuke-kun. Sorry I didn't get you anything." And the last remaining clone jumped off the roof, yelling madly to draw attention away from his apartment. They all looked at the window in shock, both in his actions and his words.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
So... I figure since I'm far enough ahead... would you guys like previews of the next chapter?  
  
Chapter Title: 11. Where Loyalties Lie  
  
The whispers became louder and Sasuke turned his head sharply, noticing that it had quickly become a general chant. Kill the Kitsune. Kill Naruto. The dark haired genin looked up to see the blonde's eyes blaze in anger at this. He struggled fiercely with his bonds and the cloth wrapped around his mouth. Orochimaru smirked at his attempts and silenced the crowd once more.  
  
"The monster wants to talk." He nodded to one of his ninjas who removed the gag.  
  
That's it for now... Ah, well... till the next post, ne? 


	11. Where Loyalties Lie

To GWFascination, I've got so much chapters planned that you'd be killing me if you knew, but so far I've only gotten to chapter 17 typed. That's not even a third of what I've got planned already... oops... did I scare some people? Well I can promise you all some "stuff" in the very near future. Oh, and Sasuke's the first one to fall. For Naruto that is. It all starts on chapter 14... the one where I screw over Naruto... quite literally.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru... a little later on... SakuNaru (don't hate me...it's for all those of you who want to bash Sakura... trust me you'll like this... even though I don't like bashing her, there'll come a chapter when you'll ALL want to bash her)  
  
Chapter Title: 11. Where Loyalties Lie  
  
The group stood stunned, as dozens of Naruto clones made their way through the village, making sure to be as loud and obnoxious as the original. It was almost too much that the boy was so willing to stand up for Sasuke and the force behind his parting words were much more profound than some of them thought he was capable of. Sakura was the first to break the silence with the angry stomp of her foot.  
  
"He's such an idiot!" She screamed frustrated. "He's going to just be a fool and get himself caught and then Orochimaru will know where we are, where Sasuke is!" She shot a glare around the room for someone to say otherwise, but her fellow genins were looking at the floor, thinking the same as her. Tsunade spoke up.  
  
"Do you really have such a small amount of faith in him?" She asked. "I know from experience that he's a stubborn brat when he needs or wants to be, something of which he will definitely use here. Even if he does get caught it will be a while before he spills his secrets. He's done more than you, little girl, to save the village." Sakura frowned deeply, but Jiraiya stepped in, placing a hand on Tsunade's shoulder to prevent them from arguing.  
  
"She's right, Naruto would die before he'd betray Sasuke, no matter how much he claims to hate him." Iruka spoke up, smiling at Jiraiya's nod. "Jiraiya's obviously seen how protective Naruto can be of Sasuke and everyone who's loyal to him. He's ONLY loyal to those who have earned that loyalty. Not many people have such an honour in his heart yet." Jiraiya nodded, smirking.  
  
"I know the little brat, and he's probably more likely to give away YOUR position than Sasuke's." He looked pointedly at Sakura. "Of course he'd never give away either if he could help it, but over the last couple of years Sasuke has earned more loyalty from him that you have." She frowned deeper and sat down in a huff. She didn't like people telling her how wrongly she'd misjudged Naruto.  
  
"Naruto will be fine, Sakura." Sasuke said to her, walking to the window to watch what the clones were doing. "But we're wasting Naruto's time just talking about him. Sure he'd like to hear people standing up for him, but we need a plan." The adults nodded and set to coming up with a plan before Sasuke gasped involuntarily, followed by a series of loud popping sounds.  
  
"K'so!" Sasuke muttered as a scream pierced the silence engulfing the village. Naruto's scream. Everyone ran to the window to find the village, which had been littered with all of Naruto's clones, now completely empty save the ninjas that were gathering people to the centre of the village.  
  
"What's going on?" Choji asked, looking to Shikamaru, who wore a look similar to Sasuke's.  
  
"Naruto's been caught." He muttered. "So much for our planning time."  
  
"Why are they gathering the people, though?" Hinata asked quietly.  
  
"I don't know, but I want to know what happened to Naruto, let's go." Sasuke exclaimed, preparing to climb out the window.  
  
"Wait!" Tsunade said putting a hand on his shoulder to stop him for a second. "Not everyone should go. Iruka, take a couple of them to the centre, but use disguises. Don't let Sasuke get caught." Iruka nodded and tapped Kiba and Hinata on the shoulders. Hinata didn't need to change as she wasn't in any danger but Kiba used Henge no jutsu to age his appearance to look like his father. Iruka turned to the window to see a beautiful young girl where Sasuke once stood, but of course she was wearing clothes.  
  
"Naruto taught it to me." Sasuke muttered at their shocked looks and headed out of the window. Iruka shook his head sadly, wanting to curse the blonde, but followed the girl out the window to be followed closely by the other two.  
  
"We'll come up with something while you go and check out what Orochimaru's planning. Meet us at Sasuke's house when you're done." Tsunade nodded to them, shutting the window and walking back to the centre of the mess that was Naruto's house.  
  
***  
  
They walked slowly towards the centre, blending into the crowd easily. Most of the villagers looked confused and slightly scared as they were herded towards the Hokage Monument. As they got closer, the four made their way closer to the front to get a good look at the place where everyone else was watching patiently. Orochimaru stepped out on the roof of the Hokage tower and Iruka saw Sasuke and Kiba flinch slightly before composing themselves quickly. He returned his gaze to the youthful man who was looking over the village triumphantly. He cleared his throat before he addressed the crowd.  
  
"Good morning Hidden Leaf. I am Orochimaru-san of the Sound. You might be wondering why I'm here on such an occasion, especially with your Hokage no where in sight. Oh, that's right, she's fled for her life. I've taken over your village without you people even having to wake up. It was nothing more than a late night scuffle and Tsunade-hime went into hiding with her tail between her legs." He laughed at the stunned looks beneath him. "Hai, it's all true. Your greatest warriors are in hiding and are cowering in fear from me. Maybe you, the people, can answer my terms." He nodded to someone beside him and Naruto was brought out, bound and gagged. Reflexively Iruka's arm shot out to grab Sasuke's forearm to stop him from lunging forward. Sasuke stayed where he was, but not before growling and narrowing his eyes, never taking his gaze from the men on the roof. Whispers shot through the crowd. Orochimaru silenced them by raising his hand.  
  
"This young boy here tried to distract my army and is unwilling to talk, regardless of my lazy attempts, so I was wondering if I could appeal to you. I am looking for an Uchiha Sasuke. Has anyone seen the boy?" Nobody answered. "I'll take it that you haven't then, however he's the only one I'd like right now." He gestured grandly with his arms. "I've occupied this entire village, and I have your monster within reach of my kunai," he whipped out a knife and held it to the boy's throat. "This young boy has the power to destroy each and every single one of you, your husbands, wives, and children. And I have the power to end your nightmares. All I want is the Uchiha boy." More whispers spread through his audience, along with Kiba and Hinata shooting Iruka confused looks. They didn't know why the man was threatening Naruto's life.  
  
"If you people don't help me, I'll do what ever it takes to release the Kitsune upon your village for the second time. So what will it be? Uchiha for the destruction of the beast, or do I let Uzumaki-kun's demon loose upon your village?" Kiba turned his angry gaze on Iruka, finally understanding what the man was talking about.  
  
"Ne, Naruto's not the Kitsune." He whispered to his mentor, trying to tone down his anger. He was hoping Iruka would agree and put his mind to rest, but the damage had been done and the sensei shook his head.  
  
"Iie, Kiba-kun. Naruto is the Kyuubi no Kitsune."  
  
"No he is not." Sasuke hissed, overhearing their conversation. "He may have the fox inside of him, but that does not mean he IS the fox." Hinata frowned and Kiba gritted his teeth.  
  
"But how can that be?" Hinata asked softly, to avoid attracting attention to them. The rest of the villagers were also talking amongst themselves, deciding whether they should hunt Uchiha in order to save themselves.  
  
"His birthday is October 10th, Hinata-chan." Iruka said. "It's the same day the villagers celebrate the day the monster was sealed." Her eyes saddened immensely and she dropped her gaze to the floor, poking her fingers together.  
  
The whispers became louder and Sasuke turned his head sharply, noticing that it had quickly become a general chant. Kill the Kitsune. Kill Naruto. The dark haired genin looked up to see the blonde's eyes blaze in anger at this. He struggled fiercely with his bonds and the cloth wrapped around his mouth. Orochimaru smirked at his attempts and silenced the crowd once more.  
  
"The monster wants to talk." He nodded to one of his ninjas who removed the gag.  
  
"You bastards!" Naruto yelled ferociously. "How could you be so willing to give up your strongest shinobi to the enemy just to kill me? You are disgusting, all of you." He spat, quite literally, at the people below him. Orochimaru's face darkened and he slashed Naruto's face with the kunai he was holding, catching him just below his eye, across his cheek. It left an angry red slice, beginning to bleed almost instantly.  
  
"Unlike them, I'll never give up Sasuke, EVER!" He yelled at the snake ninja, loud enough for everyone to hear. "He'd never do that to the people he cared about." Orochimaru sneered at the boy.  
  
"Are you so sure Sasuke-san cares about you?" He hissed. Naruto hissed back, eyes glowing red and a pulse of brilliant red chakra exploded from within him, breaking his bindings and throwing back the men holding him securely. He scanned the crowd for a moment, his eyes landing on the familiar image of Sasuke's Oiroke no Jutsu. Many of the villagers had started to scramble away, but he stayed still, eyes locked with Naruto's. Naruto seemed to calm down a bit, but a question flashed across his face for a brief second before he fled from the tower, towards the forest of Practice Area #44.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
And yet again, Naruto's secret is blabbed to the whole world by someone other than the vibrant blond. I'd almost gag if I didn't plan it out this way. Yes, that's right, folks. It may scare you to know this but I've got a whole stack of other chapters just waiting to be typed... and most of the story is already planned out... okay, so I'm having a little trouble getting Naruto to get back in his body, but that's okay. I'm also trying to scooch a little lime in there too so that I don't get hurt by the reviewers.  
  
Chapter Title: 12. Battle Me  
  
He stopped beside a tree, seeing a flash of orange in the distance. He took a moment to catch his breath before walking slowly forward, aware of the possibility of it being an enemy trap. He eased forward and found that the orange blur had stopped at a tree beside a small pond. He quickly moved forward and found that it was indeed Naruto.  
  
"Naruto." He called softly, recognising it was a clone, through his Sharingan eye, but allowing Naruto the satisfaction of believing he thought it was the real thing. "Please come back with me?" He asked, sitting down in the grass beside the clone. Upon hearing no response he continued. "This is the quietest I think you've ever been. Why do you all of a sudden care about the village's hatred of you? It's not like you did before." He looked up to see the clone pop out of existence.  
  
"Battle me." Naruto demanded from behind him. Sasuke smirked and turned around.  
  
I hope this is enough. And, even if it isn't, you all know I'm quick to post my chapters anyways, so it won't matter much. ^-^  
  
Expect the next one either Tuesday or Wednesday. ^-^ 


	12. Battle Me

Okay... so it's only Monday night... I kinda couldn't wait... ^-^ I can't believe how fast I'm going with this... I'm usually a chapter every so often... not every day... the next will come out... Thursday or maybe Wednesday if I get impatient again...  
  
Oh, and as soon as I got this review, I knew I had to dedicate this chapter to Jiro. ^-^ You totally made my week with that comment. I know this is going to be a very long fic, and I will understand if people stop reading because it will take forever to get out... but all I did was take a whole bunch of little ideas I had for Naruto fics and combined them all into one continuous story. It took a while for me to figure out what should go when they were what age... but I organized it all. Oh, and so far I've written in five lemons for this story, SasuNaru of course... thought there are I think... two NaruSasu's in there as well (to make up for how long it took me to get the two together) and the story's got a long way to go yet.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: (This is a list of EVERY possible pairing in this whole fic... cept the one's I forget) SasuNaru and NaruSasu (I like em both so they're both in it)... a little later on... SakuNaru, HinaNaru, OroNaru, GaaSasu (even if it's faked on both parts), KakaIru, LeeSaku, ano... JiOro, one- sided SakuSasu, ItaKisa, a little ShikaCho (but I'm willing to make it ShikaIno depending on who wants what... this is the one coupling that's not yet decided) and if someone shows any interest in them, HinaNeji (cause he needs to make it up to her)  
  
Also there's a part where Naruto er... ... thinks about something Sasuke says and those pairings are NaruShino, NaruShika and NaruSasu but of course he nearly gags at the first two. ^-^  
  
Chapter Title: 12. Battle Me  
  
Naruto disappeared, but not before Iruka saw the look exchanged between the two. Naruto was questioning if Sasuke really did care about him enough to do the same, but he still did what he could to help. Orochimaru sent his guards after the boy immediately and the people who were left began to disperse back into the town, some still looking for Sasuke and the others running to their homes for cover.  
  
"A reminder, Hidden Leaf!" Orochimaru yelled after them. "I'll only leave when I have Sasuke. You have no more fighters left. You have no other choice." He walked back into the Hokage tower to wait for word of Naruto's capture. Iruka and the others headed back to Sasuke's house, thankful that they had switched hideouts. Now that Naruto was being chased, he might go back to his house and they wouldn't be safe there. Iruka opened the door first to find a kunai embedded in the wood right beside his head.  
  
"Ne, how about knocking, Iruka-san!" Shikamaru called bitterly. "We thought you were Orochimaru's shinobi." Iruka pulled out the knife and handed it back to the young chuunin.  
  
"So what happened? While we were moving we heard a lot of chanting from the crowd but weren't close enough to make out the words." Tsunade exclaimed, pulling out a chair for the sensei. Iruka took it and buried his face in his hands. Sasuke and Kiba let go of their jutsu and walked over to the fire solemnly, while Hinata stood in the doorway, shivering.  
  
"They want Sasuke." Iruka mumbled. Kakashi was surprised by the reaction they were getting from the shinobi who went to the gathering.  
  
"No kidding." Shikamaru said lazily, twirling his kunai between his fingers. Sasuke shot him a glare.  
  
"That's not it, baka." He snapped. "He said he'd get rid of Konoha's Kyuubi no Kitsune in return for me." Tsunade dropped the bowl she'd been sipping miso soup from and Sakura took a second before it clicked in her mind as well and gasped. The other younger shinobi looked at them confused.  
  
"But wasn't the Kitsune sealed away?" Shikamaru spoke up. Kiba nodded, lowering his eyes to the floor.  
  
"Hai, in Naruto-kun." He muttered.  
  
"So Orochimaru will kill Naruto in exchange for Sasuke?" Neji asked, placing an arm around his cousin and leading her closer to the fire they'd made. All four of them nodded. Amazingly, everyone was taking it better than the elders had hoped.  
  
"Naruto's been hated for the crimes of the fox by most of the villagers who know the circumstances of his birth." Tsunade explained.  
  
"Hai, the chanting you heard," Sasuke added. "That was the whole village chanting 'Kill Naruto'." Everyone's eyebrows rose at this, Sakura's especially. She hadn't realized the extent of the village's hatred for Naruto. "He was there too. Naruto. He was tied up and gagged but he managed to escape by releasing a chakra pulse from the kitsune. Orochimaru's ninjas are after him." Tsunade nodded.  
  
"Sasuke, I want you to go after him and find him before they do." Sasuke nodded in agreement, standing up.  
  
"No!" Sakura yelled, standing in front of the door. She was slightly afraid of what she'd heard and didn't want Sasuke to risk his neck for the idiot. "He could get captured by those men!" Tsunade frowned at her. The pink- haired girl wasn't thinking things through when it came to Sasuke and Tsunade had noticed it now, too.  
  
"Sakura, Sasuke can handle himself. I'm sure he can find Naruto easily and bring him back before any of Orochimaru's people can interfere. You don't have much faith in anyone, do you?"  
  
"I'm just looking out for Sasuke-kun's safety." Sakura shook her head.  
  
"Well, you don't have to. I'm not a child." Sasuke pushed past her and left his house.  
  
***  
  
The first place Sasuke checked was Naruto's apartment, thinking Naruto might have gone there first, thinking that's where everyone else still was. It was empty, like he had expected, but that didn't mean he couldn't find clues as to where the blond had disappeared to. He moved a couple of broken chairs and clothing, making his way to the boy's bedroom. Clothes and broken wood littered the floor and he nearly smirked when he found a small version of Kakashi beat up and lying in a corner. It was old and still had a few rusty kunai lodged in its stuffed head.  
  
He began moving things out of his way until he came across an old photo of Team 7 from when they had been formed over three years ago. He ran his finger over the cracked glass, studying the features of the people in the picture. Naruto hadn't changed much in those few years. He was still shorter than Sakura, but not by much anymore. He let his eyes wander to the boy's eyes and noticed something he hadn't before. Even though Naruto looked almost as loud as he usually was, his eyes were slightly dull. He recognised the look from pictures of himself and that disconcerted him. It was only because he knew what to look for now, that he saw it. The village had done this to him for years, and it was only now that Sasuke became really aware of it.  
  
A flood of anger overcame him at the thought of the village's treatment of Naruto and he threw the picture at the wall roughly. Nothing was what it should have been. He turned around, away from the mess that was the blond's room and, kicking another inanimate object from his path, left Naruto's apartment, heading to the forest. Maybe he did another full circle like he had the night Sasuke chased him because of the dreams. He sighed and took off across the rooftops.  
  
***  
  
He stopped beside a tree, seeing a flash of orange in the distance. He took a moment to catch his breath before walking slowly forward, aware of the possibility of it being an enemy trap. He eased forward and found that the orange blur had stopped at a tree beside a small pond. He quickly moved forward and found that it was indeed Naruto.  
  
"Naruto." He called softly, recognising it was a clone, through his Sharingan eye, but allowing Naruto the satisfaction of believing he thought it was the real thing. "Please come back with me?" He asked, sitting down in the grass beside the clone. Upon hearing no response he continued. "This is the quietest I think you've ever been. Why do you all of a sudden care about the village's hatred of you? It's not like you did before." He looked up to see the clone pop out of existence.  
  
"Battle me." Naruto demanded from behind him. Sasuke smirked and turned around.  
  
"I was starting to wonder if the clone was defective." He smirked at Naruto's challenge. "I don't think you want to challenge me, Naruto-kun. It might end up with the same results as the last time we fought, with me sitting on top of you." Naruto ignored Sasuke's out of character humour and drew a kunai.  
  
"Battle me, and if you win I'll go back with you." He said, his eyes narrowed, ready to fight. Sasuke hesitated before nodding and pulling out a kunai of his own.  
  
"Your funeral." He muttered, receiving the boy's quick offence. Naruto wasn't acting crazy and out of control, like Sasuke had assumed he would, but instead dealt blow after blow, thinking his moves through in advance. He'd have a challenge to keep up without using his chakra or Sharingan to gain the upper hand.  
  
Naruto began to notice Sasuke's upper hand in hand-to-hand combat and tried to move away, but only ended up getting himself pinned to the tree behind him by several of the other boy's sharply aimed kunai. He struggled for a few seconds but his clothes were held fast. He looked up as his rival slowly came towards him.  
  
"You know, Sasuke-kun." He whispered. "I think I'm starting to realise just what everyone else thinks they see in you. Your great potential." Sasuke frowned for a moment but Naruto was far from being done. "The only difference is I see Sasuke's potential and they see an Uchiha's potential." Sasuke felt his cheeks redden at Naruto's praise. He didn't know exactly what had brought it on, but didn't say a word in fear that he'd come to his senses and take it all back.  
  
"Ne, are we done here?" He asked backing away from the pinned boy, who nodded in response, but when he kicked out his feet in an effort to walk, he growled slightly at Sasuke.  
  
"Hai, I'll keep my promise if you'll take out these stupid kunai, show- off." He muttered. His rival nodded and pulled out his knives.  
  
"You have to honour your word, though." He reminded. The blond smiled and clapped a hand on Sasuke's shoulder.  
  
"Of course, that's my 'Ninja Way'!" He began walking ahead.  
  
"Oy, Dobe!" Sasuke called out. "Where are you going?" Naruto turned around confused for a second.  
  
"To my apartment, of course."  
  
"We moved to my house to avoid getting captured." Sasuke smirked, causing his friend to narrow his eyes.  
  
"And you expected me to know that? I'm not a mind-reader!"  
  
"Hai, demo maybe you should try it some time."  
  
"TEME!!"  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
There is a very graphic scene that can be placed in either chapter 13 or 14, and I was just wondering if you guys want it or not. No details, however it may just be the thing that pushes this story into the R rating. It's not exactly needed, however if an overwhelming number of people ask me for it, I'll type it in somewhere.  
  
Chapter Title: 13. Another Naruto Distraction  
  
Naruto sat down on a chair beside the door and yawned tiredly, while Iruka peeked out the window beside him.  
  
"They're patrolling again, but I don't think they're as concerned about Naruto as they are about getting Sasuke." He muttered. Jiraiya stood up suddenly.  
  
"We need a plan right now!!" He yelled. "We need to get close enough to Orochimaru-kun to be able to kill him." He turned to Iruka. "His arms are still burned pretty badly, ne?" He asked. Iruka nodded after thinking about it for a couple of seconds. "Well then, we know how to get close to him. He can only switch bodies with someone who has the curse, and past that he can't do any jutsu so we have an advantage. All we need to think of is how to get close to him. Me and Naruto can take it from there." He looked over to the blond, but Naruto was peering through the blinds.  
  
"We have a slight problem here." He muttered, shutting the blinds tightly and pressing himself up against the wall. "We have company." He added, which was followed by a loud knocking on the door.  
  
WAHAHA! I know this isn't much of a cliff-hanger, but what do you expect? It wasn't much of a chapter either... not that my opinion matters much.  
  
Oh and to whom ever this makes sense: 64 and counting... 


	13. Another Naruto Distraction

What started out as a story that would be posted once a week... would be three-four chapters typed ahead of every post... has now become post every couple of days... and I'm 6 chapters ahead of every post... something's not right. Expect things to even out over the next week when school and homework starts kicking in... I am after all in my (supposedly) last year of high school... so work load is rough... somewhat.  
  
(Wow, 8 reviews in 8 hours... I think you are all deserving of another chapter)  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: (This is a list of EVERY possible pairing in this whole fic... cept the one's I forget) SasuNaru and NaruSasu (I like em both so they're both in it)... a little later on... SakuNaru, HinaNaru, OroNaru, GaaSasu (even if it's faked on both parts), KakaIru, LeeSaku, ano... JiOro, one- sided SakuSasu, ItaKisa, a little ShikaCho (but I'm willing to make it ShikaIno depending on who wants what... this is the one coupling that's not yet decided) and if someone shows any interest in them, HinaNeji (cause he needs to make it up to her)  
  
Also there's a part where Naruto er... ... thinks about something Sasuke says and those pairings are NaruShino, NaruShika and NaruSasu but of course he nearly gags at the first two. ^-^  
  
Chapter Title: 13. Another Naruto Distraction  
  
When the two boys returned to the Uchiha house, everyone sighed in relief to see them back safely, but none were as happy as Sakura. As soon as they had opened the door, she was latched on to Sasuke's arm like a leech. Naruto chuckled softly, while Sasuke growled and narrowed his eyes but couldn't get a word in edgewise.  
  
"SASUKE-KUN! You're okay!" She exclaimed, pulling the boy inside. "Shikamaru-kun was being annoying!" Sasuke cocked an eyebrow at the boy who was standing motionless in the middle of the floor.  
  
"Why?" He asked the Chuunin. Sakura didn't notice he hadn't said a word to her and answered for him.  
  
"He was pacing like a caged animal!" Shikamaru shrugged and continued pacing. "He said he was trying to think of a plan to get rid of Orochimaru's army, but there are too many ninjas that we might not know about."  
  
"Hai!" The boy exclaimed before frowning. "Never mind. It'll never work."  
  
Naruto sat down on a chair beside the door and yawned tiredly, while Iruka peeked out the window beside him.  
  
"They're patrolling again, but I don't think they're as concerned about Naruto as they are about getting Sasuke." He muttered. Jiraiya stood up suddenly.  
  
"We need a plan right now!!" He yelled. "We need to get close enough to Orochimaru-kun to be able to kill him." He turned to Iruka. "His arms are still burned pretty badly, ne?" He asked. Iruka nodded after thinking about it for a couple of seconds. "Well then, we know how to get close to him. He can only switch bodies with someone who has the curse, and past that he can't do any jutsu so we have an advantage. All we need to think of is how to get close to him. Me and Naruto can take it from there." He looked over to the blond, but Naruto was peering through the blinds.  
  
"We have a slight problem here." He muttered, shutting the blinds tightly and pressing himself up against the wall. "We have company." He added, which was followed by a loud knocking on the door.  
  
Everyone stopped where they were and looked at Naruto pleadingly. Iruka began quietly ushering the younger shinobi into hiding spots while the rest tensed for an attack. Kakashi tried to quietly push Sasuke into a hiding spot, too but he was stubborn and refused to move. Naruto saw this and frowned.  
  
"Open up, or we'll destroy the house!" A deep voice demanded from outside. Naruto flinched and decided to do some quick thinking jutsu. There was no way he'd let them get caught so quickly. He turned his back on the others and made the seals with his hands, hidden from everyone who might try and stop him. There was a loud pop and a cloud of smoke when Naruto opened the door.  
  
"We're looking for Uchiha Sasuke!" The man stated, waving the smoke out of his face. "YOU!" He exclaimed pointing to the person who opened the door.  
  
Sasuke's face greeted him, looking grim before suddenly turning behind himself and looking at the bewildered REAL Sasuke.  
  
"DOBE!" He yelled. "Why did you perform such an obvious decoy! These ninjas aren't idiots like you!" The men looked from Sasuke to Naruto in confusion before jumping on the one closest to them and dragging him out of the house kicking and screaming. The door slammed behind them and everyone came out of their hiding spots, watching the entrance in awe.  
  
"What the hell was that?" Jiraiya asked, stunned. Sasuke fell to his knees in shock.  
  
"That stupid idiot did it." He whispered.  
  
"Nani?" Sakura asked, no one understood what had just happened.  
  
"Sakura, Kakashi, do you two remember when we were on our way to the Mist country with Tazuna?" He asked. They both nodded. "You remember when we were attacked by the Demon Brothers and Naruto froze while we defended ourselves?" They nodded again and it dawned on Kakashi.  
  
"He swore he wouldn't freeze up again. He did that quick-thinking jutsu while we just stood here, freezing up." Sasuke nodded solemnly.  
  
"Well at least now we have a bit more time to plan how to keep you safe, especially if they think he's you." Shikamaru spoke up earning himself a glare from the owner of the Uchiha house.  
  
"While you sat on your ass behind my couch, Naruto's saved my life for the second time today. He needs our help now, more than I do. If you hadn't noticed, I'm not the one who needs to be kept safe." Sasuke snarled, jumping up, ready to fight the other boy. Iruka placed a calming hand on Sasuke's shoulder but nodded his head in agreement. So did Jiraiya and Tsunade.  
  
"We need to start planning how to save Naruto now. Orochimaru isn't going to be the happiest little bunny when he figures out the idiot tricked his men again. Naruto is in a lot of danger." Shikamaru nodded.  
  
"Plus he's probably still a little resentful that Naruto was able to talk Sasuke into coming back with us. First thing we need to do is find out what Naruto-kun's location is." Kakashi nodded, and the adults and Shikamaru (with Choji standing behind him, watching his best friend in action) began to plot out ways to get the blond back. Sasuke stood behind Kakashi's chair for a few moments before he realised he wasn't any use to them for strategising.  
  
He looked over to where the genins were sitting, beside a small fire, talking amongst themselves of the newest developments and secrets that they had just learned. He could tell that he wasn't needed in either group, not that he had any real desire to be with them in the first place. Not while his mind was stuck on Orochimaru's prisoner. He walked quietly up the stairs to the roof and watched as the sun began to set on his sixteenth birthday. His mind, however, was far from anything birthday related, and only one thought went through his mind as the stars began to sparkle in the dying light. What was happening to Naruto?  
  
***  
  
Naruto was sitting against a wall in the Hokage Tower with his hands chained to the wall just above his head. His jutsu had worn off, not too long ago and he'd been chained up until Orochimaru came to deal with him personally. A couple of the solders took turns beating him up for not only deceiving them but putting their lives in danger for failing Orochimaru. He heard the creaking of an open door, but was in too much pain to lift his head to see who it was. Most likely, he'd find out sooner or later as they'd take their own anger out on him.  
  
"Why do you insist on protecting Sasuke-san from me?" An oily voice hissed at him. He cringed, knowing who it was before cursing himself as pain shot through his head at the movement. "I do believe this is the fourth time you've done this." Ignoring the pain, Naruto brought his head up to glare half-heartedly at the Sound ninja.  
  
"If you tell me where he is, I'll promise the pain will stop." The blond narrowed his eyes even further before spitting in Orochimaru's eye. The other shinobi muffled their surprised gasps.  
  
"You wouldn't understand." He growled letting his head hang to ease the pain. Orochimaru stopped his chin from resting on his chest and with his long delicate fingers, brought Naruto's face up to look him in the eye.  
  
"I like your strong spirit, Naruto-kun." He whispered softly. "It's wild and untamed, even without the Kitsune, but you are nothing but an ant compared to Sasuke-san." Naruto snapped his teeth down, angrily, in an effort to bite the man.  
  
"I can do anything Sasuke can." He snapped back, knowing that was the wrong thing to say, but found he needed to say it and defend himself. "I can handle anything Sasuke can and more." He felt a shiver run down his spine as Orochimaru smiled.  
  
"Is that true? Well, then, we're just going to have to see if that's so. Do you think you can handle my inquisition?" He asked, signalling for the soldiers behind him to leave them in privacy. They all rushed out as quickly as they could. "Or will you break under pressure and beg for mercy. I'm not quite sure, but I like the idea of both possibilities." He grinned slyly and began his torture of Naruto, ignoring the cries of pain and terror, and the tears that fell despite Naruto's best efforts to keep them back. It was going to be a long night.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well now. Orochimaru has Naruto, and the all-dreaded chapter 14 is coming up next. I wonder what it was that I've done to my poor widdle Naru-chan. Well, no not me in particular, but I'm sure you do. Want a preview?  
  
Chapter Title: 14. Down the Hall  
  
"Shikamaru!" Sasuke hissed under his breath as they hurried along the hallway, crouched over. The chuunin looked over his shoulder and frowned.  
  
"Nani desu ka?" He asked, slightly irritated.  
  
"We've nearly finished searching every room, including most of the guarded rooms. Where the hell is he?"  
  
"If I knew that I wouldn't have dragged you through all of the ones before." Shikamaru snapped back, making sure to keep his voice down. They had almost gotten caught once before with one of their arguments. Sasuke snorted at the boy's sarcasm but held his tongue as the stopped outside yet another room. It was the Hokage's bedchambers.  
  
"Do you think we should go in there?" Shikamaru asked hesitantly. "Orochimaru might be occupying that room." Sasuke pushed past him.  
  
"Did you really forget that Tsunade and Jiraiya have pinpointed Orochimaru at the top of the tower? You stay here and keep a look-out, I'll go in and see if Naruto's there." He slowly pushed open the doors and walked in, one hand on his kunai holster just in case.  
  
***MUAH! Don't you just hate me now? Well, probably not, but I know one person at least who keeps calling me "MEANIE-HEAD" every time I tell her my plans for Naruto. ^-^ But its fun torturing characters! Trust me, it is. You should try it some time.  
  
Ja ne!  
  
Okay, maybe I should take a break from posting... just for a couple of days... I'm only up to 18 and I want to type up a bunch more chapters so that later I can relax and just post for a while... ya know it takes a lot to keep posting so quickly... trust me when I say I have no idea where the heck it's all coming from.  
  
Oh, and JIRO!!! You have no idea how big my smile was when I read your review. I hadn't even been thinking of making it like the manga... it's just a movie in my head and I type it as I see it happening. ^-^ I'm glad you all like it...  
  
Okay, a couple of days means... THURSDAY!  
  
(BTW... sorry to all you, but the graphic scene... which I've chosen to leave out... wouldn't have been SasuNaru... it would have been a lot more violent... and included less clothing but a lot of blood and matted golden- blond hair. I'll let you figure out what I've done in chapter 14...) 


	14. Down the Hall

One thing before ANYTHING............ GOMEN NASAI JIRO!!! I'd like to say no, but... you actually hit the nail on the head... cept I didn't LET Orochimaru do it... I love Naruto!!! I'd never let him do that to my poor Naru-chan if I wasn't anticipating future... shall I say... 'problems' being resolved with Sasuke and Naruto. One of them is a lemon. ^_^ enjoy!!  
  
Thursday! Like I promised... (ignore those who say I posted it the night before... they're lying... *grins innocently*)  
  
*WARNING* (Yeah I finally have a warning) There is a lot of graphic injuries in this chapter, along with the mention of rape and non-consensual sexual violence (No, not because of Sasuke and Naruto, although I'm sure lots of you would like that, ne?). The rating still stands as of now, however if I'm asked to, it may go up because of this chapter.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: For most of his life, Naruto has had one dream (becoming Hokage) and one love (Sakura), but as he grows up he realises not everything is as easy as he wants to believe it is, and his romances are not as simple as getting the girl, but finding a love that's not bound by superficial reasons, and that's when he realizes he had his priorities mixed up all along. (Eventually it'll be SasuNaru)  
  
Pairings: (This is a list of EVERY possible pairing in this whole fic... cept the one's I forget) SasuNaru and NaruSasu (I like em both so they're both in it)... a little later on... SakuNaru, HinaNaru, OroNaru, GaaSasu (even if it's faked on both parts), KakaIru, LeeSaku, ano... JiOro, one- sided SakuSasu, ItaKisa, a little ShikaCho (but I'm willing to make it ShikaIno depending on who wants what... this is the one coupling that's not yet decided) and if someone shows any interest in them, HinaNeji (cause he needs to make it up to her)  
  
Also there's a part where Naruto er... ... thinks about something Sasuke says and those pairings are NaruShino, NaruShika and NaruSasu but of course he nearly gags at the first two. ^-^  
  
Remember this list cause it's the last time you'll see it here...  
  
Chapter Title: 14. Down the Hall  
  
Sasuke took up Shikamaru's place in the middle of the room, wearing a hole in the middle of the carpet, pacing back and forth. Shikamaru sat with his back to the fireplace, ignoring the withering glares the anxious boy was shooting him every so often. It had been a good couple of hours since Naruto had been caught and they were still trying to work out the kinks in their plans. It took another couple of laps before the chuunin stood up and placed a hand on Sasuke's shoulder to stop him.  
  
"I've figured it out." He said quietly, attracting all eyes to the boys. He looked at everyone before he explained it. "We need to know three things, right? Naruto's position in the Hokage Tower, Orochimaru's whereabouts and how many shinobi are guarding the entire structure." Everyone nodded. "Well if Tsunade and Jiraiya take care of Orochimaru's position, after all you are two of the three legendary sennin, and me and Sasuke look for Naruto, then the rest of you can scout out the ninjas guarding the tower. The only problem that I could think of is stealth. There's no need to start any fighting. If you get caught, don't make a fuss. It will only attract more. Avoid noise of any kind and stick together, right?" They all nodded again.  
  
"We need to get Naruto out of there as soon as possible." Sasuke said. Tsunade agreed and nodded to the group set up to locate and occupy the guards.  
  
"You all go first and then send word back of everyone's positions, okay?" They nodded and snuck out into the night followed closely by Tsunade and Jiraiya who were going to go in right after the place was secure.  
  
"Good luck Sasuke-kun." Jiraiya winked at the two remaining boys over his shoulder. Everyone knew they needed it.  
  
***  
  
"Shikamaru!" Sasuke hissed under his breath as they hurried along the hallway, crouched over. The chuunin looked over his shoulder and frowned.  
  
"Nani desu ka?" He asked, slightly irritated.  
  
"We've nearly finished searching every room, including most of the guarded rooms. Where the hell is he?"  
  
"If I knew that I wouldn't have dragged you through all of the ones before." Shikamaru snapped back, making sure to keep his voice down. They had almost gotten caught once before with one of their arguments. Sasuke snorted at the boy's sarcasm but held his tongue as the stopped outside yet another room. It was the Hokage's bedchambers.  
  
"Do you think we should go in there?" Shikamaru asked hesitantly. "Orochimaru might be occupying that room." Sasuke pushed past him.  
  
"Did you really forget that Tsunade and Jiraiya have pinpointed Orochimaru at the top of the tower? You stay here and keep a look-out, I'll go in and see if Naruto's there." He slowly pushed open the doors and walked in, one hand on his kunai holster just in case.  
  
Inside, the room was littered with shadows and the only light came from a candle at the bedside. The crimson silk sheets were in array, every so often catching the flickering candlelight and glowed a deep blood red. He scanned the room and his eyes came to a stop at a figure lying in a crumpled heap, chained to the wall beside the bed. Its head was lolled to the side and what little clothing was left on its body was stained black and red, caked with dried blood and numerous burns. He moved closer and nearly jumped out of his skin when his weight caused one of the floor boards to creak. The figure flinched, but didn't raise its head.  
  
"Go fuck yourself, Orochimaru." He said, voice scratchy and hoarse, but still stubbornly strong. Sasuke raised an eyebrow in recognition and was about to deny being Orochimaru but the boy continued. "You're not getting your hands on Sasuke, as long as I still have a say in it. I don't care how many times you beat me up or rape me. It makes no difference to me anymore." Sasuke gasped in shock, causing the blonde boy to raise his head curiously, his head protector falling over his eyes and then to his shoulders.  
  
"Naruto." Sasuke whispered, catching sight of his blue eyes. Not even the hair was all one colour, matted with blood stains. So much had happened in the few hours he'd been in Orochimaru's hands. Something flickered in the boy's eyes, but quickly died out before Sasuke could catch it. He couldn't help the sudden nausea that welled up inside of him.  
  
"No, I'm not Naruto." He spoke in a quick, quiet voice, lowering his head in shame. "I'm just Orochimaru's fuck toy. The person you're looking for is down the hall. Gomen. I just seem like Naruto." Sasuke stepped toward the boy, cursing under his breath.  
  
"You stupid idiot." He whispered to Naruto. "You should never have helped me. I never wanted to see you hurt like this. Not this way." The blond looked up and offered a forced fake half-smile.  
  
"You should leave now, Sasuke." He replied. "You might be caught by Orochimaru." He turned his head away from Sasuke's intense gaze. He didn't want Sasuke seeing him like that either, which was obvious. Sasuke could see it in his eyes just before he looked away.  
  
"Naruto, I'm not disgusted by you, nor should you feel any embarrassment from me seeing you. I'm disgusted by Orochimaru's actions." Sasuke knelt down so his face was level with Naruto's. "I'm so sorry, you should be the one disgusted by me for freezing."  
  
"Leave." Naruto replied forcefully, ignoring what Sasuke was saying. "I can handle anything Orochimaru deals my way." The dark-haired genin growled and cursed him again.  
  
"Stop playing the fucking martyr for one moment!" He yelled. "Sakura won't like you if you're dead. She won't like me much either if I let you die here." Naruto looked up and narrowed his eyes.  
  
"This has nothing to do with Sakura liking me." He retorted. "You are my comrade, like Kakashi or Iruka. I'm not going to let you die, so will you just leave so I can do my job?" Sasuke snorted in response.  
  
"No, it's not your job to be the protector of my-"  
  
"I went through hell just to get you back from Orochimaru the first time; I'm not going to let you be just handed over to him." He interrupted. His rival frowned, thinking about this for a moment.  
  
"Shikamaru!" He called to the slightly ajar door. The boy popped his head in. "Help me get him out of here. We need to be fast if we're going to avoid Orochimaru." Shikamaru nodded and, ignoring Naruto's protests for them both to leave and save themselves, unchained Naruto's bruised arms and lifted him up, balancing his arms on their shoulders.  
  
"We have to hurry." Shikamaru whispered. "The last I heard from Tsunade- hime, Orochimaru was headed down our way." Sasuke nodded and let go of Naruto's hand for a moment to open a window and jump out to the roof only a little bit down. Shikamaru gently lowered Naruto down to him, missing the way the battered boy winced in pain. Sasuke didn't miss it though. He held Naruto cradled in his arms and asked if his arms had hit any sore spots or open cuts. Naruto looked up at him and smiled apologetically.  
  
"Iie, it was just my butt. It's still sore." Sasuke paled considerably at the mention of what had happened to the boy in his arms, but shook it off. "What is it?" He looked down and noticed that Naruto had noticed his sudden discomfort.  
  
"Gomen nasai."  
  
"When the REAL Sasuke returns let me know, ne?" Naruto smirked. "You're creepy, apologizing to me so much in one day. I can handle this, Sasuke."  
  
"How can you act like this after what happened?"  
  
"I can act like this because I know I've passed Orochimaru's test." Sasuke frowned, not understanding the boy's meaning. They cleared the roof and landed clumsily on the dirt floor and set off towards Sasuke's house at a run.  
  
"Test?" Sasuke asked.  
  
"Orochimaru didn't think I could handle everything you could." He explained. "And I did." He smiled, proudly. He didn't like what Orochimaru did to him, and he wished to god that he could take back his brashness, curl up into a little hole and die, but he didn't break under Orochimaru's wrath and that in itself was something to be proud of. Shikamaru held open the door to Sasuke's house for the two of them and Sasuke carried Naruto up the stairs.  
  
"You know, you could put me down. I can walk." Naruto pointed out, struggling in the older boy's arms. Sasuke glared, but set him gently to his feet. He took a few wobbly steps before falling backwards into Sasuke's awaiting arms.  
  
"So you can walk, ne Dobe?" He sneered, gathering Naruto back into his arms while the blond pouted.  
  
"Fine you can carry me." He yawned. "But don't you expect me to stay awake." He lay his head on Sasuke's broad shoulder and snuggled down into the embrace. "You're comfy." He mumbled into Sasuke's shirt. He looked down and noticed he was already fast asleep. He went into his bedroom and placed Naruto tenderly on the top of the sheets, pulling a light blanket over him to cover all the burns and gashes. He didn't even want to begin thinking of where Naruto got all of them. He went to leave the room but turned around to look into the room one last time.  
  
"You're the bravest ninja I know, Kitsune." He whispered more to himself than anyone else and turned out the lights.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Aww... Yeah, I'm trying my best to put in more hints of shounen ai. Of course, there's going to be no blatantly obvious things for a while, which means no one saying "I love you, Naruto-chan." (of course there's always Sakura professing her love to Sasuke) but I can definitely promise a kiss between the two in the... somewhat near future... ^-^ I know some of you will like that. In this section, as Naruto gets over the rape, there will be a lot of comforting from Sasuke, cause him and Shikamaru are the only ones who know.  
  
Chapter Title: 15. Healing Time  
  
"What about us? Can't we become closer?" Kakashi looked down, surprise evident in his visible eye. He wasn't used to the Iruka's bluntness. He took a step back and shook his head.  
  
"We're at war. Making such ties could end up being dangerous in the future. I'd rather keep things between us strictly professional first and friendly second. There is no room for anything else." He turned away from the window and went back to the table where the other adults had been discussing plans. Iruka frowned at Kakashi giving him the cold shoulder and looked back outside.  
  
"You make it sound as if you and me are at war as well, Kakashi-san." He muttered to himself. The silver-haired jounin turned around, knowing that wasn't meant for his ears and frowned. He really didn't like pushing Iruka away. For him it was quite the opposite but there were certain things Kakashi had promised himself never to do. Being with Iruka was one of them.  
  
Also, another thing to note... this Orochimaru storyline will end (finally) on chapter 17. And from now on I'm not stopping... I'm just slowing things down a bit. I won't post the next chapter until either Saturday or Sunday... if it can be helped. (I have a habit of posting early) 


	15. Healing Time

Okie, you've all been good... and I'm high off of being hit in the face (archery injury... did you know those damned arrows bite back?) and I got over 100 reviews!! So I suppose I can post this today...night... and I've been good as well!!! I've been asked to add more shounen ai. And I'm going to remind you that I'm up to 18 now in chappie typing... but I'm sure you should like this one if you want fluff. It's extremely sappy... and there's a bunch of SasuNaru fluff... so be forewarned.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: Blah, you've heard this a hundred times, do I really need to keep putting it here?  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru...... one sided SakuSasu, and hintings of other couples throughout. Oh, and definite KakaIru... although... I warn you. I'm not exactly nice to them.  
  
Chapter Title: 15. Healing Time  
  
It took Naruto a good two days to recover fully from Orochimaru's brutal treatment, with the help of his fox demon. Over those two days Sasuke kept a vigil watch over his sleeping body and rarely ever left his side, save for bathroom breaks and when people forced him out of the room. One big reason for his protectiveness was that Orochimaru wasn't too happy that his captive had been taken from under his nose and was out for blood. The only thing keeping him out of Sasuke's house was that guests had to have an Uchiha's permission to enter... or they were the current Hokage which was the reason they had gotten in the first time when Sasuke wasn't with them.  
  
On the second day, Sakura peeked in and noticed Sasuke had nodded off again. He was so tired from beating himself up over Naruto's condition, but no one except him and Shikamaru, who had eavesdropped on the whole conversation, knew the truth about what Orochimaru had done to him. Everyone else just assumed he had been beaten up and nothing more. She walked into the room and gently shook Sasuke's shoulder, waking him from his usual light sleep. He looked up at her, wondering why she had awakened him.  
  
"You need to take a break, Sasuke-kun." She offered apologetically. He shook his head stubbornly and stayed put in his chair. "Sasuke." She looked at him pointedly, a warning in her voice.  
  
He remained steadfast in his convictions for about two seconds before he rose from the chair. He didn't have the energy to fight with her, so he just left the bedroom, making sure to cast one final glance at the boy asleep in the bed before going out to his backyard to get some sleep. Even though it was a wonderful sunny day, the weather was perfect for calming his senses enough to get a bit of rest before they attacked Orochimaru. He curled up on his side in the grass and closed his eyes.  
  
***  
  
Naruto opened his eyes to the brilliant blinding light peeking through the curtains 'some idiot' forgot to close, or, in Naruto's mind at least, left them open just to spite him, never mind his headache. He sat up slowly, mindful of every cut and bruise. Most of them had disappeared completely, but there were some that still made their presence known when he moved his muscles in the slightest. He ignored the slight sharp pains and took in his surroundings.  
  
The bed he was in was soft and the comforter was a warm crimson. Around the room were a bunch of pictures turned face down and a small TV which had the screen kicked in. The windows that opened to the balcony had the blinds drawn back revealing one that had tape placed over the cracks where, apparently, someone had slammed into it during training. He looked to his side and found Sakura curled up in a small chair, fast asleep. He smiled at her and pushed back the covers, quietly, so as not to wake her. The last thing he wanted was her yelling at him for leaving Sasuke's room. The only way he could tell whose room it belonged to was the blue familiar-looking shirt tossed over the broken TV, back up, that was covered with blood. He grimaced, knowing instinctively it was his, and opened the balcony doors, intent on finding the boy.  
  
He looked straight down and smirked, finding Sasuke lying on his back in the grass, fast asleep. The wind whipped through his bangs, but the sleeping boy took no notice. With a quick leap, Naruto jumped down, cursing his remaining bruises for stinging upon landing. He walked quietly over to Sasuke and curled up beside him in the grass. He took a big yawn before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep himself. He felt somewhat safer around Sasuke.  
  
Sasuke blinked and looked down to the mess of (now clean) blond hair and smiled. His whole body seemed to freeze in response to Naruto's closeness but he told himself to relax. Bringing a hand up to wrap around Naruto's shoulders, he closed his eyes again and went back to his usual light slumber.  
  
***  
  
Iruka looked out the window and smiled at the sight of the two in the grass. Kakashi peered over his shoulder and mimicked his look of contentment.  
  
"They're becoming closer as friends, ne?" He whispered. The chuunin looked up and nodded.  
  
"What about us? Can't we become closer?" Kakashi looked down, surprise evident in his visible eye. He wasn't used to Iruka's bluntness. He took a step back and shook his head.  
  
"We're at war. Making such ties could end up being dangerous in the future. I'd rather keep things between us strictly professional first and friendly second. There is no room for anything else." He turned away from the window and went back to the table where the other adults had been discussing plans. Iruka frowned at Kakashi giving him the cold shoulder and looked back outside.  
  
"You make it sound as if you and me are at war as well, Kakashi-san." He muttered to himself. The silver-haired jounin turned around, knowing that wasn't meant for his ears and frowned. He really didn't like pushing Iruka away. For him it was quite the opposite but there were certain things Kakashi had promised himself never to do. Being with Iruka was one of them.  
  
***  
  
A couple of hours later Naruto woke up. He was groggy and for some reason his legs were tangled in the sheets again. He tried to untangle himself, but the sheets seemed to have a mind of their own and instead of letting him go like good sheets were supposed to do, they pulled him closer. Shaking his head roughly Naruto opened his eyes to see that the sheets he thought were attacking him was actually Sasuke and their limbs were completely wrapped around each other. It took him one second to process the information before he jumped back kicking and screaming.  
  
"HENTAI!!!" He yelled, trying to push Sasuke off of him. This woke Sasuke instantly and, in an effort to shut the blond up, placed his hand over his loud mouth and held him until he stopped trying to kill him. He gasped when he saw the panicked look in Naruto's blue eyes and remembered what had just happened to Naruto. He lifted his hand and mumbled an apology.  
  
"I've only just turned 16, dobe. Do you really think I'd try anything like that?" He growled, letting go of Naruto completely, rolling his eyes at Naruto's reflexes. His rival sat up and threw his arms across his chest huffing loud and dramatically, but made no move to defend his rude outburst.  
  
"Why did you follow me outside?" Sasuke asked after a couple of seconds.  
  
"I don't know. I felt safer with you beside me. More comfortable, you know?" The dark-haired genin nodded in understanding and turned to Naruto, opening his arms. He looked at Sasuke like he was crazy before frowning in contemplation. At first he thought Sasuke was joking and then he started to wonder about the implications of being in the other boy's arms, but in the end he really didn't care about all the questions, only that he enjoyed the hugging and it made him feel protected, a good thing considering what had just happened. He looked back up to Sasuke and nodded, hugging him and lying back down in the grass.  
  
"This doesn't mean we're anything more than rivals, ne?" Naruto exclaimed warningly. Sasuke nodded, resting his head on top of Naruto's. He knew the blond would say something like that.  
  
"Of course." They went back to sleep.  
  
***  
  
When they finally came back into the house, Sakura was in a frenzy. Not only had she lost track of Sasuke, but Naruto as well. She thought Orochimaru had caught them and not even all the shinobi in the Uchiha house could calm her down or convince her otherwise. So when Sasuke and Naruto walked into the house, Naruto with his hands in his pockets and Sasuke with his hands carelessly thrown behind his head, both looking like it was just another day, she had to be held back else she tore their heads off.  
  
"Where the hell have you two been?!" She yelled. "You two could have been killed and we'd never have known!" Naruto scoffed playfully.  
  
"Together, me and Sasuke can't be caught by a stupid idiot like Orochimaru." He grinned.  
  
"Actually, he's a lot smarter than you may think, Naruto-kun." Tsunade butted in. He gave her a weak glare.  
  
"We can't hide from Orochimaru forever." Jiraiya spoke up, interrupting the childish glaring match between the Hokage and the young genin. "We need to deal with him now or else the village will give up hope in Hokage-sama. We need as much help from the outside as you can get. Round up teachers and shinobi." He nodded to the adults who disappeared then looked at Naruto. "You six need to stay here, your lives are still in danger. Orochimaru remembers faces and if he sees any one of you he won't hesitate to strike." Choji and Kiba looked pale but Neji and Shikamaru nodded solemnly. Naruto rolled his eyes.  
  
"I could have told you that." He muttered and couldn't help but notice that everyone turned their gaze guiltily to their shoes. He knew they must have felt bad about what happened to him.  
  
***  
  
When the others returned they had over two dozen shinobi willing to help Sasuke out, but who refused to lift a finger to help Naruto.  
  
"Orochimaru should just take him now!" One man exclaimed. Sasuke frowned and turned his back on them all.  
  
"Then leave now." He said. "If you will not help a fellow Konoha shinobi then I should not expect you to help a fellow Konoha shinobi. You all can just screw yourselves as far as I'm concerned." They all look to one another and apologize. Sasuke cut them off. "Iie, you've had your chance."  
  
"NO!" The man from before spoke up. "Gomen, Naruto, I want to protect Konohagakure from scum like Orochimaru and that includes all villagers." The others nodded in agreement. Naruto smiled, surprised by their change of heart. He did notice, though, that they were only doing it because of Sasuke. Apparently they only wanted to keep the Uchiha blood in Konoha, but he was willing to take what he could, regardless of the meaning behind it. Sasuke turned around and nodded.  
  
"Then I think we can figure something out."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Chapter Title: 16. Practicing With Distractions  
  
Growling slightly, he continued to fight, hoping that Naruto would come to his senses and stop showing off for Hinata but he was sadly mistaken. He dealt a quick blow to the boy's chest, flipping him over his shoulder before turning around and kicking him swiftly in the side. Naruto winced in pain before staggering back to his feet.  
  
"What the hell was that for, bastard?" He asked angrily, clutching his side. Sasuke smirked inwardly, noticing his partner's focus was fully on him again.  
  
"You were too busy looking good for your audience to notice that you left yourself open." He snapped back. "If you act like this when a girl watches you then you'll end up slicing off your own head when the real thing comes." He glared spitefully at the blond before turning to Hinata.  
  
"Don't you have anything better to do other than distracting my sparring partner?" He yelled. The shy girl jumped up and ran back into the house mumbling her apologies.  
  
***Okay, so I've got one vote for a ShikaIno... I was considering it... of course I was considering every option. As of right now, I don't like Ino that much (even though I'm supposed to be cosplaying her at AN2004 with a whole bunch of my friends... who are doing the rest of the cast) because of what she said to Choji about going on a diet. I liked what Shikamaru said afterwards.  
  
I need someone who can read chapter 17 for me. I know I'm a half-decent writer and I know when things are awry. I hate how I do 17 so I'm looking for someone who'll help me re-write it. If anyone would like to help, leave your e-mail address where I can contact you... (hopefully it's hotmail cause then I can IM you... I've found that's a lot easier) THANKS A BUNCH!!! 


	16. Practicing with Distractions

Okay, I've given this story to a couple of people... to beta chapter 17, but GWFasc... you never left your e-mail... so I dunno how to contact you!! Leave it in your next review and I'll send you 17... and maybe 18... if I feel up to it.  
  
Title: Jaded  
  
Series: Naruto  
  
Rating: PG-13 (Will go higher later on)  
  
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Romance, Humour, Horror, Tragedy, Supernatural, Fantasy, etc. (pretty much all)  
  
Summary: Blah, you've heard this a hundred times, do I really need to keep putting it here?  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru...... one sided SakuSasu, and hintings of other couples throughout. Oh, and definite KakaIru... although... I warn you. I'm not exactly nice to them.  
  
Chapter Title: 16. Practicing With Distractions  
  
They figured it would take three days to properly train and prepare for a final confrontation with Orochimaru. They figured that since Naruto's escape he had upped his security and they'd never have another chance like that so they'd have to settle for a full-fledged offence. Naruto had, for the most part, opted to stay downstairs, training night and day by himself. Often a couple of his fellow shinobi would keep him company but he refused to fight with them and they never asked. Hinata had frequently been found just sitting on the stairs watching him work. Jiraiya came down to the basement on the second day, when he was alone.  
  
He sat on the same steps and watched as Naruto aimed dozens of attacks at the new punching bag at the centre of the room. He'd already gone through two of them so far. It wasn't until the boy was starting to show signs of fatigue that Jiraiya spoke up.  
  
"Don't use Rasengan against Orochimaru." He exclaimed. "But if you're forced to, only as a last resort." The boy didn't turn around and only acknowledged the old man's comment with a curt nod. "Once the guards are taken out, everyone will be attacking him together. I don't want you to miss and kill one of your friends." Again Naruto nodded sharply and Jiraiya turned to leave.  
  
"Jiraiya?" The man stopped and looked back to see the blond's shoulders shaking. "We'll kill him, right?"  
  
"Yeah, Naruto-kun. He won't live past tomorrow."  
  
***  
  
Naruto walked outside to meet and train with Sasuke. He nodded solemnly before crouching low in anticipation of an attack. The dark-haired ninja faked left and kicked right, almost hitting his partner, but the blond dodged and brought his kunai knives up to protect his face. Sasuke smirked and jumped back to await Naruto's response.  
  
A few minutes into their fighting, Naruto looked to the side to find they had an audience. Or rather, he had an audience. Hinata sat on the steps of the house, watching them practice. He grinned to himself at the attention and returned his attention to his sparring partner. If Hinata had come to watch him fight, then he'd show her a fight.  
  
Sasuke had noticed the girl's presence, too and frowned when Naruto's movements became slightly exaggerated in order to show off to her. He wasn't even paying attention to Sasuke.  
  
Growling slightly, he continued to fight, hoping that Naruto would come to his senses and stop showing off for Hinata but he was sadly mistaken. He dealt a quick blow to the boy's chest, flipping him over his shoulder before turning around and kicking him swiftly in the side. Naruto winced in pain before staggering back to his feet.  
  
"What the hell was that for, bastard?" He asked angrily, clutching his side. Sasuke smirked inwardly, noticing his partner's focus was fully on him again.  
  
"You were too busy looking good for your audience to notice that you left yourself open." He snapped back. "If you act like this when a girl watches you then you'll end up slicing off your own head when the real thing comes." He glared spitefully at the blond before turning to Hinata.  
  
"Don't you have anything better to do other than distracting my sparring partner?" He yelled. The shy girl jumped up and ran back into the house mumbling her apologies. Sasuke frowned at having to scare her off like that. He understood why Naruto enjoyed the attention, but now wasn't the time to be thinking like that. He turned back to Naruto who looked to be ready to fight again.  
  
"Next time, watch your back." He warned, following Naruto's lead. The blond scoffed.  
  
"You're assuming there's going to BE a next time. You assume too much." They continued practising long into the night.  
  
***  
  
By the third day, Naruto had found a way to rope Rock Lee into teaching him some Taijutsu moves in the basement. Lee had been out of commission for over four years, but he could still outlast the best of them, and only walked with a slight limp. He agreed eagerly to help Naruto train; taking any chance he got to show his support for the shinobi of the village.  
  
Gai sat off to the side, watching his former student clash head-on with the flamboyant blond from his rival's team. He found it amusing that Lee had found a way to fight for Konoha through the kid. Naruto surprised him, though, treating his young mentor much the way he would treat any other shinobi and didn't seem to put any notice to the fact that Lee had been stripped of his position. He acted as though the green-clad boy was just another of his comrades getting ready for battle. He smiled fondly, watching the two increase Naruto's speed and knew Kakashi had taught the boy some valuable lessons.  
  
Lee on the other hand, was amazed by the blond's stamina. Even after hours of gruelling training, he was still energized to try the new moves again, and again. His spirit and stubbornness was starting to make Lee exhausted.  
  
Gai laughed out loud when he saw his former student forced to lean on an old armchair to catch his breath while his friend was still bouncing off the walls. They'd finally found someone who could outlast Rock Lee. Both boys looked up at the sensei's laughter and smiled themselves.  
  
Lee stuck his hand out for a handshake. The blond eagerly took it and shook it firmly.  
  
"Do it for Sakura-chan." He exclaimed. Naruto's eyebrows shot up. For a while now, he'd totally forgotten about her in his attempts to train.  
  
"Hai, I will." He replied. "I think I need some sleep now, though. Everyone else must be training, ne?" He grinned and bounded up the stairs, two at a time, towards his room. Even though he didn't show it, he was dead tired, and wanted to be well rested come the morning when they set out to reclaim their village.  
  
***  
  
"Get up, idiot!" Sakura's scream echoed throughout the entire Uchiha household. Anyone who was asleep before would be awake now. Anyone, that is, except Naruto, who needed a hit to the head before he'd give up his nice warm blanket and rise from his bed. He moaned and groaned but finally awoke when his clothes were shoved into his face.  
  
"Get dressed, dobe." Sasuke said. "We're ready to leave." He looked to the side to see Jiraiya getting the same warm treatment from Tsunade. Naruto nodded and quickly changed into his notorious orange outfit and followed his rival downstairs to where Sakura and everyone else were waiting for him, while the other men and women from the village were already fighting Orochimaru's guards.  
  
"Good luck, everyone." Tsunade nodded to them all before opening the door and running out into the street to assist the fallen shinobi.  
  
Naruto ran out, following Sasuke and the other genin towards the heart of the fighting near Hokage Tower. He pulled out his kunai and shuriken stars and began aiming at anything that came at him with a Sound hitai-ate. Within minutes the streets were covered in blood, but no sign of Orochimaru. At least, none until everything stopped.  
  
Naruto, being the brash fool he was, continued attacking until he noticed the unnatural stillness of his surroundings. He dropped the man he had been pummelling and looked around to see that everyone was looking up, watching the Tower. He, too, turned his gaze upwards to see the infamous Sound ninja standing with one foot balanced over the railing, holding Sasuke by the back of the neck over the edge with a kunai to his throat.  
  
"Naruto!" He called down, his voice slick and oily. The boy suppressed a shiver, but refused to respond. "If you don't give up now, I will slit this boy's throat." He stifled a gasp but remained defiant.  
  
"You're bluffing, stupid old snake!" He called back, snidely. "You need Sasuke's body for your stupid Immortality Jutsu. You won't risk killing him just to get to me." Orochimaru laughed, shaking his head.  
  
"You really are like Jiraiya in every way. So idealistic. It's so obvious in your eyes. In everything you do. There will be other bodies, Naruto- kun." He hissed, a sinister smile playing across his face in reference to other things. "It's not just Sasuke who has the Uchiha Sharingan." Naruto's eyes widened, knowing he meant Itachi. Sasuke tried to turn his head to glare at the Sound ninja holding him, but only ended up snarling and raising his hands to try prying the thin fingers from his neck.  
  
"Are you so sure you want to do that, Sasuke?" He tried to ignore the slickness in the man's voice and continued to fight off the fingers.  
  
"Dropping to my death is better than anything else you've got to offer." He snapped, frustrated that the fingers wouldn't budge. Orochimaru returned his gaze to Naruto who had been brought up to the top of the tower by some of his ninjas. Sasuke managed to turn his head slightly to see his rival walk slowly towards the Sound shinobi.  
  
"Naruto, don't!" He yelled, earning himself a tighter grip on his neck. "Stop trying to play the hero!" The blond looked up to him and glared lightly.  
  
"Look who's talking." He snapped back.  
  
"We need you to save the village."  
  
"No you don't."  
  
"Hai we-" He was cut off by Naruto.  
  
"NO! I've never truly been acknowledged by anyone in this village, so how the hell am I going to save it. No, WHY the hell should I save it? Iruka never did, because he thought I couldn't handle being a chuunin." Sasuke winced as the hand around his neck became even tighter.  
  
"Dobe, I acknowledge you, now stop this." Naruto looked at him in amazement.  
  
"3... 2... 1..." Orochimaru counted down Naruto's time.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Chapter Title: 17. Enter the Demon  
  
"Now let Sasuke go." He said more forcefully than he thought he could. Orochimaru stepped back, still holding the boy and kunai.  
  
"As you wish, Naruto." He nodded and dropped the dark-haired genin, but not before catching his shoulder quickly with the kunai. Sasuke cried out in surprise and fell to the floor cradling his deep wound. That was all Naruto needed to spark his and the Kyuubi's rage. His eyes narrowed to glowing red slits and his nails grew longer and sharpened. In two seconds Naruto had Orochimaru on the ground, fighting to dislodge the teeth from his neck.  
  
***the above spoiler may change a bit... and I'm still looking for people to give me ideas to fix up 17, so all people are welcome! 


	17. Enter the Demon

Rating: Let's just start calling it R early... but it's still only PG-13 for now...  
  
Genre: All of the above... cept parody... parody and song-fic... and sci- fi... and...  
  
Summary: Blah, you've heard this a hundred times, do I really need to keep putting it here?  
  
Pairings: SasuNaru main...and KakaIru... all others... you'll figure them out soon enough  
  
Chapter Title: 17. Enter the Demon  
  
"Dobe, I acknowledge you, now stop this." Naruto lowered his head, hearing Orochimaru reach "one".  
  
"All the more reason I have to do this," he muttered solemnly and stepped forward. "Fine, Orochimaru. I'll go with you, but you have to let Sasuke go and not drop him over the side of the tower." Orochimaru nodded, moving close enough to the boy to run his tongue along the side of his cheek. Naruto winced and grimaced at the wet muscle but forced himself not to back away in disgust. Anything could set Orochimaru off, and he preferred to keep his limbs. "Now let Sasuke go," he said more forcefully than he thought he could. Orochimaru stepped back, still holding the boy and kunai.  
  
"As you wish, Naruto." He nodded and turned to Kabuto, who had followed Naruto up to the roof of the Tower. "Bring me the scroll," he said, referring to the one that held the seal to the body switch. He dropped the dark-haired genin, as he said he would, but not before catching his shoulder quickly with the kunai. Sasuke cried out in surprise and fell to the floor cradling his deep wound. It was all Naruto needed to spark his rage past reason, giving the Kyuubi ample opportunity to wreak havoc through the boy's body. His eyes narrowed to glowing red slits and his nails grew longer and sharpened, while in his head he subsided and let the Kitsune take over. Naruto's reasoning had been the attempt of Sasuke's life, whereas the demon was only looking for freedom and avenging almost sixteen years of confinement. In two seconds Naruto had Orochimaru on the ground, fighting to dislodge the teeth from his neck. The other ninja tried to get close enough to drag the crazed boy off their leader, but they were held back by the immense waves of chakra flowing off of the two.  
  
Orochimaru gasped in shock when he felt the boy's razor-sharp canines sink into his flesh and immediately began trying to defend himself. With the solitary kunai he kept in his hand, he aimed for all of Naruto's vitals. A stab to the heart and lungs, a slash to the blonde's throat, and numerous wild attempts at his menacing red-eyed face, but almost as soon as he made contact the sliced flesh healed, leaving only the blood that had been spilled from the wounds. Little by little, the Sound ninja's attempts at getting rid of the boy were slowed as his movements became lazy and sluggish. He didn't understand what was going on until he noticed the blonde's chakra level spike every so often. Naruto was letting the Kitsune drain him of all his chakra. His soldiers tried again to attack, but a massive wave of chakra hit them and nearly levelled the entire tower. The fighting started again, but most of the people below were mesmerised by the power that seemed to radiate from the boy on the Tower. Sasuke was no exception.  
  
He had scrambled back at the sight of the Kitsune emerging and watched in awe as Orochimaru died with the last ounce of chakra the boy drained from him. Heaving himself off of the now dead ninja, Naruto turned his bloodthirsty gaze on the others who had tried to attack him. He hunched his shoulders and smirked, showing off his blood-drenched teeth. A small trail of blood dripped down his chin and he lapped it up eagerly, before lunging at the nearest man, ready to devour his chakra as well. The Kitsune's lust for more chakra overwhelmed him and kept him blindsided to the horrible chaos he was creating. He hadn't been let out for nearly four years and he was hungry for any kind of revenge he could get his already blood-stained hands on. Several of the enemy ninjas ran in fear, and the rest attempted fighting the monster, believing in the old saying 'there's strength in numbers'.  
  
Kabuto, just returning with the scroll in hand, ran over to the body of Orochimaru and placed his fingers over the wound, trying to offer enough chakra to wake the man up. He watched Naruto wearily, his body tense in anticipation of a strike against himself. He knew he was vulnerable while transferring his energy, but he steadied himself anyways. Just as Orochimaru began to stir again, Naruto looked behind him and, with a blast of chakra that not even Kabuto could have predicted or prepared for, he was dead, and Orochimaru hadn't had enough time to take in enough chakra to regain his life.  
  
The blond crawled off his victim and stalked towards a Sound ninja who was struggling with his final breaths. His eyes flashed and he dove at the ninja for one final vengeance blow, but felt a hard object tackle him to the ground. Sasuke had finally had enough of Naruto's loss of control. If they weren't careful, he could turn on the entire village.  
  
"Naruto, stop this." The monster growled and fought to dislodge the boy, who had him semi-pinned to the ground. "Onegai, Naruto-kun, yamerou. Yamerou," he whispered pleadingly. His begging fell on deaf ears and Naruto's demon-possessed body began to struggle harder. Sasuke's eyes widened in pain as he felt the blonde's teeth sink into the soft flesh of his hand. He shook his arm wildly trying to dislodge the incisors and failed to notice the clawed hands coming up to meet the side of his face. He hissed in pain but continued to hold down the Kitsune. It dawned on him suddenly, that Orochimaru and several of his jounins had done the same thing and ended up dying. He looked down, confused and saw that the once- red eyes had clouded over to a murky lavender and the struggle was no longer between the two boys but between Naruto and the Kitsune. He frowned and waited patiently for a winner between them.  
  
"Come on, Dobe," he whispered softly, urging his rival to not give up. "Onegai, Naruto."  
  
It took a few moments before his voice broke through the demon to Naruto. His chest heaving from exertion, he slowly began to calm down and his eyes opened to reveal their normal sky-blue colour.  
  
"Sasuke?" Naruto asked, timidly. The older boy nodded. Naruto sat up and looked at the destruction around him. His eyes went wide as he took in all the destruction he'd caused when the Kitsune had gotten out of control. "I did all this," he stated. It wasn't a question and there was no hint of pride in his voice, only a strange mix of disbelief and horror. He knew he'd gone too far. He looked up and gasped at the sight of Sasuke's face. Three deep gashes ran along his cheek, just barely missing his eye. They seemed to be the source of all the blood on the dark-haired boy's face and looked extremely painful but Sasuke didn't even seem to notice them. He was too worried about Naruto. The blond lowered his head in shame. He let his eyes wander over to where Orochimaru lay; his body had finally stopped moving.  
  
"He's dead," Sasuke mumbled, seeing where the blonde's gaze fell. He lowered his head and frowned. Part of him was thankful he was finally gone, but he knew how painful it must have been for him to be forced back into the living. Naruto nodded, still ashamed of what he had done.  
  
"I shouldn't have come back," he whispered. "I should have left when that old hag in the forest told me to. She said I couldn't contain the demon, and look! She was right!" Sasuke frowned at his rival's new attitude. Naruto moved to stand up and leave, but he shot his hand out to stop him. The blond looked down and winced seeing yet another wound inflicted by him. He knew because he could still taste the coppery fluid from the bite in his mouth.  
  
"Don't go," Sasuke said softly.  
  
"But look at all of this! How can you even stand to be in the same village as me still after what I did to all those people?"  
  
"I can because in this whole village, you are my best friend," he stated firmly. "I need you to stay with me. Who else is going to help me train to beat my brother? Onegai, shinyuu... don't go." Naruto looked down to see no tears in Sasuke's eyes, but a strong sincerity. He hesitated before nodding and dropped to his knees wrapping his arms tightly around Sasuke's neck.  
  
"When I saw him take a swing at you, I snapped. I let the Kyuubi take my revenge," Naruto explained, keeping his voice level. "It was just like when we fought Haku, and I didn't want to see you die again." His voice was slowly chipping away all of Sasuke's resolve. He didn't really feel entirely comfortable holding the boy like this, but he knew Naruto needed his comfort as no one else was around to give it. He slowly and awkwardly put his arms around Naruto's back and buried his face in the boy's shoulder.  
  
"It's okay, Naruto," he whispered. "It's over. You were strong. You were very brave. You did it." He hesitated before continuing. "Cry now, it's over. Orochimaru's gone."  
  
But Naruto still refused to cry.  
  
***  
  
Tsunade was the first to arrive on the roof of the Tower, and automatically knew what had just happened. She scanned the dead bodies and sighed in relief to see that none of them were the two boys who had been brought up there. Her eye caught movement off to the side and saw Sasuke and Naruto holding onto each other, shaking slightly. She quickly gave them both a once over to confirm her suspicions. Naruto was shaking like a leaf, but physically perfect, while Sasuke was covered in gash after gash, bruise after bruise. She felt sorry for the blond, so much more than his injured friend. Naruto hadn't been ready to take a life yet and the Kyuubi's aggressiveness had stained his hands red. They would just have to remind him continuously that it was for the best. She walked over to her former team mate and sighed softly; pained that it had to end that way. In her heart there had always been hope that he'd come back to them all.  
  
Behind her followed a handful of jounin soldiers and they helped assist Naruto and Sasuke down from the Tower roof.  
  
"What happened here?" She heard one of the shinobi ask Sasuke, who had his arms slung over the man and Naruto's shoulders for support. The blond looked up at her knowingly and nodded. She smiled and nodded back, realising he wished it to be kept as much a secret as possible.  
  
"These boys have just gone through a terrible ordeal, let them rest," she requested, ushering them all down the stairs, not missing Naruto's sigh of relief.  
  
***  
  
There was no funeral for Orochimaru. No one truly believed he deserved one, except for his two former team mates who knew him better than anyone. The rest of the village wanted nothing more than to pretend it never happened and move on with their lives. Tsunade agreed with their wishes, but made sure the Sound ninja's ashes were spread over a small patch of grass in the Hokage garden and visited it almost every day with a single flower.  
  
"Tsunade-chan!" A deep voice called to her. She turned and greeted her friend with a small, sad smile. Jiraiya ran up to her in his wooden geta, wobbling off balance and falling flat on his face in a patch of daisies. She snickered lightly at his antics. He lifted himself up and smiled broadly at being able to make her smile after Orochimaru's death.  
  
"Ohayo, Jiraiya-kun." She nodded and returned her gaze to the small grave. He walked solemnly up to her side and looked down.  
  
"It's sad, really," he spoke after a few minutes. She looked up at him but waited for him to continue. "He had only one ambition, to learn every jutsu in the world, and it's been taken away from him."  
  
"You don't mean to say that you wanted him to kill those two boys!" Tsunade shot back, appalled. He looked to her and smiled, waving his hands to defend himself.  
  
"Of course not! I don't even know why I'm here. After all, he's not the same shinobi we grew up with. What I'm trying to say is that, he was our best friend and we didn't help him."  
  
"We tried. You, more than others," she protested. "And you know that Naruto would mourn Sasuke's death too, regardless of how corrupted he became. We tried and that's what counts." He shook his head and knelt to the small mound of earth and pulled from his pocket a daisy that he'd swiped in his fall, placing it gently on the grave.  
  
"I didn't ever want him to learn Rasengan," he exclaimed when he stood again. "I know it's selfish, but it was Yondaime's." Tsunade smiled and leaned her head on his shoulder.  
  
"I'm very protective of that kid too, but we're still Orochimaru's team mates. That's why we keep coming back here. Not just team mates, friends and, in your case, lovers, too." Jiraiya smiled at the memory.  
  
"You're not still jealous, are you?" She scoffed and hit him playfully on the shoulder.  
  
"I got over him years ago."  
  
"Yeah, right," Jiraiya laughed. "You're just saying that because you caught us in my bedroom after we..." he trailed off, making crude gestures with his hands and thrusting his hips forward suggestively. Tsunade's jaw dropped at his brashness and she dropped her fist on his head.  
  
"Baka! Stop being an idiot for once in your life."  
  
"But Tsunade-chaaa~n," he whined. She turned to face him and smiled softly.  
  
"Naruto-kun is almost exactly like you," she whispered, effectively killing the mood. He straightened and nodded sullenly.  
  
"Maybe that's why Orochimaru did what he did to him." Though Sasuke would rather they didn't, they had both figured out what the Sound ninja had done to Naruto in the Hokage's bed chambers. "That may be right, but he's not a perfect copy of you. He brought Sasuke back." Jiraiya hung his head and nodded again.  
  
"Hai, when I never could. I'm such an idiot. I feel like I failed him in some way by not rescuing him from the darkness that was consuming him. I almost whish I could go back and change it all and find out what could have been." Tsunade took his hand gently and held it tightly, leaning her head back on his shoulder.  
  
"But you don't need to go back." He looked down at her confusedly. She just kept staring at the grave and let the flower in her hand fall down to the mound of earth. "Just watch Naruto and Sasuke and you'll see it all." He let out a happy laugh and lay his head down on hers, wrapping his arms tightly around her shoulders.  
  
"Arigatou, Tsunade-chan," he whispered into her hair.  
  
***  
  
Almost a month later, when the Tower had been more or less rebuilt and the village had returned to the way things were, Tsunade called Naruto to meet her on the Hokage Tower's roof.  
  
Many of the villagers had started to torment the boy even worse than he was already used to. They hadn't seen the battle on the roof, but they blamed him for being so careless as to let Orochimaru have the chance to come back, seeking his revenge. Never mind that he was a legendary shinobi, never mind that Naruto was only a twelve-year-old genin. The blond ball of sunshine just ignored them all and shrugged off the snide whispers. He never really counted their opinions of him anyways, but they did serve to fuel his passion to become Hokage once again.  
  
He bounded up to her excitedly and announced his presence in usual 'Naruto' style.  
  
"Ohayo, Tsunade-baba!" He grinned, folding his arms behind his head. She rolled her eyes at the nickname she seemed to have adopted and nodded to him before pulling a medal from her pocket.  
  
"This is for your bravery in defending the village." She held it out for him. He studied the small token before grinning up at her playfully.  
  
"What, no awards ceremony? No wide-scale recognition?" he asked, shaking his head. "I don't want this thing. You know what happened up there on the tower. I don't want to be rewarded for letting the Kitsune take a hold of me." Tsunade nodded in understanding and put the medal back in her pocket.  
  
"I know what you mean, but I do feel the need to recognise what you and the kitsune did to save this village from Orochimaru. How about becoming a chuunin?" His eyes bugged out.  
  
"Are you kidding me?" She grinned and shook her head. "Of course I want to be a chuunin, but isn't this taking the easy way out?" She smiled fondly.  
  
"No, you not only sacrificed yourself and your safety for others without thinking about it, but you just did a series of A-class missions without stopping. Plus, it's not like it's going to be just you. Sasuke and the others have been told as well." He stood still and silent for a moment, lost in thought before he wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug.  
  
"Arigatou!" he grinned. She laughed and hugged him back, but didn't fail to notice that his smile no longer seemed as real as it had before, though it was the same one he used to wear.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Major thanks go to Kotonaru who was the one in the end who helped me with this chapter. (she's the only one who did a blow-by-blow of everything I was stupid enough to type.) THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH!!! I'd also like to thank Jai-cat for giving me some starting pointers for the story, and GWFascination for her touch up work on the 'final' draft. I hope this one is up to your standards, and is as good, if not better than what I usually write. ^_^ (It sure as hell is a lot longer...)  
  
(No preview, cause it's the end of this little arc, and I'm still patching it up with Kotonaru's help) 


	18. Damn You, Ebisu!

PLEASE READ!! ~ For a while now I've been considering changing the title, and after redoing chapter 17, I've finally got an idea for the change. The new title I was thinking of was 'Naruto no Hohoemi'. For those of you who don't know hohoemi means smile (Naruto's Smile). I've noticed it's a pattern that moves from chapter to chapter. Please let me know which title you all prefer... cause I don't want people to lose track of this story if the title changes.  
  
Chapter Title: 18. Damn You, Ebisu!  
  
To say that Naruto was restless was an understatement. The hyperactive blond had been dying for a new mission, whether it be A-class or even D- class mission. He'd take anything, but the defeat of Orochimaru nearly four months earlier had scared off some of their earlier opponents, possible Sand allies, and all of Konoha's allies no longer needed the assistance of the shinobi to ensure their safety. The only missions were D-class and the few that there were had already been given to the lower ranking genins.  
  
So all there was for Naruto to do was wander the streets and find ways to work off his cheerful energy, which found him resorting to the pranks from his younger days. Even though he rarely did them, the day of his own sixteenth birthday sparked an astounding burst of creative energy, and he expected some people to at least acknowledge his birthday and let him burn off his restlessness with them. No such luck. He woke up that morning with not a single birthday wish, making him a little bit tenser and even bitterer than he normally was.  
  
He wandered the streets for a little bit, hoping someone would say something, but they all pretty much ignored him and went on their daily business. He quickly became infuriated and opted instead to take it out on the entire village. He hid behind a wall and, rubbing his hands together devilishly, began to form plots in his head to prank all those who had forgotten his special day.  
  
"Oh well," he muttered to himself. "At least I'll have a little bit of fun today."  
  
***  
  
By mid-day, Naruto had successfully pulled off a number of pranks that would have made even Sandaime raise an eyebrow in amusement. Sakura had bright pink bubble gum stuck in her hair, and every time she thought it was finally out another gob would be thrown back in, leaving her to pick at it for hours until she finally got fed up and refused to leave the house for the rest of the day. Sasuke had most of his nice and dark clothes dyed a wonderfully bright pink, sharp enough to rival Sakura's gum-tormented hair. Even Kakashi wasn't impervious to the young trickster. All of his face masks had been painted with one of Naruto's infamous spirals. The entire village knew who the culprit was, but Naruto had managed to stay a couple steps ahead of them to avoid being caught and hurt.  
  
He was tiptoeing back to his apartment, a wild grin etched on his face, when he came across his final victim. A delighted look took over the grin, as he saw the man hunched over a bridge, watching the water thoughtfully. He hated Ebisu and he knew Ebisu hated him, so what would he lose in pranking him? He would certainly gain a lot of laughs, and the pros out- weighted the cons by a long shot so... he grinned, deciding to go for it. And he knew the perfect Jutsu for the job. He hadn't used it in a long time, so it was about time to let his 'effeminate' side out for a few seconds, long enough for a lot of blood.  
  
He nodded to himself when he had finalized the plan in his head and, jumping out from where he'd hid himself, he performed the jutsu flawlessly behind the unsuspecting sensei. One poof later a voice called out sensually to Ebisu.  
  
"Ebisuu~!" she called. He turned and in an instant the young blond was right in his face, blowing him kisses and pressing her naked body up against his. The effect was instant, but definitely not what the boy-turned- girl was expecting. Not by a long shot. He closed his eyes immediately and placed his hands together in front of Naruto's face, performing a series of lightning fast seals. Another poof followed the jutsu and Ebisu pushed the blonde away from him, wiping his nose and keeping his eyes anywhere but on the sensuous body in front of him.  
  
"That will show you, demon," he sniffed haughtily and turned away, like his words meant anything to him. Naruto blinked and watched the man leave, shaking his head and muttering cursed to the girl behind him. Apparently he had performed some sort of reflexive jutsu, but Naruto didn't understand what had happened. Nothing had changed and he was still standing there... with all of his limbs in the right place. He looked down to check and noticed that he had forgotten to release his jutsu. He closed his eyes and released his hold on the chakra. Opening his eyes slowly after hearing no telltale poof, he looked down again, only to find nothing had happened.  
  
"GAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" he screamed. Or rather... SHE screamed.  
  
***  
  
Iruka looked to the door when the pounding started. He was already in a decidedly bad mood from the moment he'd woken up and the knocking wasn't helping any. He'd dozed off for a small nap earlier on and, not twenty minutes later, woken up to find that he'd been visited by Naruto's vengeful spirit, who'd left drawings all over the side of the chuunin's face in permanent marker. He'd been trying to scrub it off for the last two hours. He opened the door, only to faint dead, a trail of blood falling from his nose. The young blond girl at the door frowned angrily and stepped over his body, slamming the door shut and dragging the man inside.  
  
"Baka perverted ass," she muttered, slapping his cheeks a little to wake him up again, making sure to cover herself a little more this time. When Iruka finally came around he was about to faint again, before he realized that it was the same little brat who'd coloured all over his face.  
  
"You idiot!" he yelled. "Drop that stupid jutsu right now!" She narrowed her eyes at him.  
  
"If I could have, I would never have walked all the way over here naked," she hissed back. Iruka blinked densely.  
  
"Stop playing pranks for one second, Naruto!" he tried again, but the girl shook her head.  
  
"I've tried that. It doesn't work. Believe me, I tried." The older shinobi stood up and ran to his room. The girl was about to go after him when he returned with a large black shirt and threw it over her.  
  
"Put that on, and then explain this all to me," he growled, still not over the marks on his face. She obliged, and began telling him about the pranks and her attempt to prank the ever-so-'prankable' Ebisu.  
  
"And then he did all of these seals and poof... I'm like this forever!!!" she cried dramatically, flinging her arms up into the air to add to the effect of her desperation. Iruka nodded, a smirk finding its way onto his face.  
  
"I see. Ebisu has had to develop that jutsu to restrain Konohamaru from using it too often against him. It usually goes away after a short period of time, anywhere from a couple of minutes to ten. How long did it take you to get here, from the time you were sealed in that form to now?" he wondered. Naruto glanced at the clock on Iruka's wall and began panicking.  
  
"Almost half an hour!" Iruka's eyebrows shot up. Ebisu must have been incredibly startled to have put so much chakra into that seal.  
  
"Then your length of time just may be a little longer than the lengths Konohamaru is used to," Iruka explained. "There was one time Ebisu was so startled Konohamaru had to go through a week of school in his female form." He added, almost wincing in anticipation of Naruto's backlash. The blonde's eyes narrowed and then widened and then... closed as a stream of curses fell from her lips. So many and so vulgar were the words that Iruka winced.  
  
"Well, it doesn't matter how long you curse, it can't be undone for now. You'll just have to wait until the seal wears off. Just be thankful it's only temporary." The young chuunin rolled her eyes, but nodded. That would be worse. "For now, you need some other clothes... I don't think you can wear my shirt for the whole time."  
  
"What about my own clothes?" Naruto asked. Iruka chuckled.  
  
"Unless you want to go parading it around that you've been sealed inside your own jutsu, I think you're going to need a new set of clothes." The blonde's shoulders sagged and she began pouting. Things weren't going right today. And on his birthday of all things.  
  
"Fine," she huffed. Iruka got up and went into his room to find her a small set of pants to go with the shirt so she would be able to go out in public. When he finally came back he had found a pair of loose drawstring pants and a smaller t-shirt from when he was a little bit younger. She went into the bathroom and came out still looking small in the clothing. Iruka smiled, but didn't comment, knowing it would only infuriate the 'girl'.  
  
"So where are we going first?" she asked him, pushing up her sleeves (that kept falling off her shoulders) looking ready to fight off an enemy.  
  
"To see Tsunade." He grinned and dragged her outside, suddenly a little happier and slowly getting over the boy's earlier pranks.  
  
"I thought you said we weren't going to let anyone else know my live was screwed over by that bastard!" she yelled.  
  
"Well, she's a girl and Hokage and will know better ideas how to conceal your true identity," Iruka waved off her complaints.  
  
***  
  
Tsunade took one look at the girl, dressed in the baggy clothing and burst out laughing. Naruto glowered and tensed to jump at her, but Iruka's hand on her shoulder stopped her from attacking anyone in anger.  
  
"It's not THAT funny, Tsunade-baba!" she yelled. "At least you ARE a girl in the first place. This is cruel and unusual punishment!!" She fought to contain her giggles and looked up and the steaming girl.  
  
"Hai, I'll help Naruto-chan here." She nodded to Iruka.  
  
"Don't you DARE call me Naruto-chan!!!" She was about to continue laughing when she caught Iruka looking at her expectantly. She shook her head and cleared her throat.  
  
"Fine, fine, Naruto. What is it that you want to wear?" she asked. The girl shrugged her shoulders.  
  
"Probably something that's not too revealing... after all this is... my body, but too much would totally ruin the purpose of the entire jutsu." She grinned despite herself. "I guess I also want to avoid being recognised..." Tsunade nodded and wrote a few things down on a scroll and handed it to Iruka.  
  
"Take this to Kakashi. He may be able to help."  
  
"WHAT!! I don't want Kakashi knowing too!" Tsunade frowned at him.  
  
"Don't you want help with this? Or would you rather EVERYONE knows who you are as opposed to just a select few. It's not like we're telling anyone who wouldn't keep your secret." She sighed again and nodded, angry that the Hokage was right. Iruka nodded to the two young looking women and disappeared.  
  
"So what did you write on that scroll?" Naruto asked, curiously.  
  
"Just a couple of things to bring to help you with your style. Don't worry; I know just what to do with you," she grinned. Being on an all boys team at a young age, she didn't have much time to do girly things, and she was finally getting to play dress-up with a live doll. Naruto might have been having a bad day, but hers just got a whole lot more interesting. Naruto glanced up at the woman and sweatdropped at her expression of glee.  
  
It had just occurred to him that coming to the Hokage with his problem might not have been such a good idea after all. He knew he was in for a wild ride. If only he hadn't gone for that last prank. No... if only Ebisu hadn't performed that stupid seal on him. If only Konohamaru hadn't overused his jutsu. NO! If only Naruto hadn't taught him it in the first place. ARGH!! Damn you, Ebisu!!!  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Okay... until further notice, Naruto will be referred to as 'she', cause that's his gender now. Don't worry, I'm not going to call her 'Naruto' for long... but you'll just have to wait and see. I hope this gender thing isn't too confusing... everyone else's gender is pretty much the same. ^_^  
  
Again, thx goes to Kotonaru who's helped me so much with this editing thing. I never could edit my own stuffs. Expect the next chapter in a week (or so, depending on how long it takes to get beta'd)...  
  
I'm off for almost all of next week cause I don't have any exams so I should be able to catch up with my chapters... yeah, there's still tons more to go. (Someone accurately called it a saga) Who knows... it's my dream to one day write a fic or something that just about everyone reads... even if they don't review... course... I'd have to get GOOD first, ne? lol 


	19. Shiya'chan, A New Point of View!

Well, I'd have to say I'm very happy with the reviews I got for chapter 18. Not too many of you like the new story twist I threw in. I know you all think it's overused, and cliché and all those other horrible words, but I figure if I can pull this off without you hating it... maybe I can pull off the rest of the fic, too. Please bear with me, and point out anywhere you think I'm screwing up. Trust me, those reviews saying "How the hell is she going to pull this one off?!" was exactly the challenge I needed to find a way to pick this story up. I took into account that a lot of you didn't like the direction I was taking and I'm honoured that you think my writing skills are above that (even if you're probably wrong... I'm not gonna complain) I couldn't see any other way to get the desired effects in this story...  
  
To Alriadne (and everyone else) this section is NOT about how Sasuke reacts to Naruto's new... circumstances. Personally, I could care less about the lying son-of-a-b... anywho... I'm more interested Naruto's character development... and how it ends, cause it leads into other things... and I promise... *thinks for a second* most if not ALL the rest of the fic is ORIGINALLY MINE!!! But you never can tell these days.  
  
Chapter Title: 19. Shiya-chan, A New Point of View!  
  
Tsunade and Naruto waited patiently on the top of the tower... Tsunade patiently, Naruto... wasn't patient at all, she'd started to pace. She wasn't comfortable waiting for her sensei out in the open, and her present gender problem wasn't helping much either. Not to mention Kakashi's habit of being late all the time. Tsunade sat on the ledge and sighed exasperatedly as she watched the girl walk back and forth.  
  
"Must you pace?" She asked. The blond girl stopped and shot her a withering glare, but didn't reply. Tsunade sighed again. "We're going to go shopping after Kakashi gets here, okay?"  
  
"Hai, demo.I don't have much money left over from the missions." She stopped and looked to the Hokage.  
  
"That's okay, think of it as my personal gift for you defeating Orochimaru." The young blonde shuddered in memory. She still didn't like thinking of the day the Kitsune almost broke the seal.  
  
"Fine, then." Naruto had given up refusing Tsunade's help a long time ago. It just wasn't worth the hassle. The Hokage seemed to have had over 50 years worth of stubbornness worked up, and he blamed it on her obsession with gambling.  
  
"Ohayo, Tsunade-hime." A voice sounded from behind them. "Naruto-chan." The girl turned around at the obvious smile in his tone and bit her tongue to keep from retorting rudely. The teacher came up to them looking both amused with her newfound predicament and annoyed at her earlier pranks.  
  
"Ohayo, Kakashi-sensei." She mumbled, biting her tongue. She knew she had no right to berate her sensei for his lateness after the pranks she pulled on him in the morning, but she still wanted to hurt someone for the 'Naruto- chan' bit.. Tsunade stood up and went up to meet him.  
  
"Hai, morning, Kakashi-san. Thank you for coming so quickly. That is for Naruto over here." She nodded to the piece of cloth in the silver-haired jounin's hands. "He's been sealed in his jutsu for a little while, no longer than a month and that should be enough to keep her identity a secret, while she completes her missions." Kakashi nodded and handed the young girl one of his facemasks that had been lucky to escape from Naruto's pranks. Naruto took it reluctantly, holding it up with her nails and keeping it as far from her body as possible.  
  
"Ew... why do I need to wear such a ratty old thing?" She looked to the Hokage for an explanation.  
  
"You need to hide your whiskers, ne?"  
  
"Hai, but how can you be so sure this wasn't just lying behind some couch beside an old ramen cup?!" She protested. Tsunade rolled her eyes.  
  
"That would be where you would find it in YOUR house, Naruto-chan."  
  
Growling under her breath, she pulled the fabric over her head and made sure it was in place in a similar fashion to Kakashi's.  
  
"How do you breathe in this thing?" She growled under her breath, but Kakashi ignored her veiled insults. Tsunade smirked and untied Naruto's hitai-ate.  
  
"Here, put this around your waist like that Yamanaka girl." Naruto looked up at her like she had three heads.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Because we're going to get you new clothes and if you want to keep some of the effects of that jutsu, you're going to have to show a little midriff, and that means using something to cover up the seal, ne?" The young blond narrowed her eyes and pulled her shirt up just to be sure and frowned when she found that Tsunade was right. The jutsu did nothing to hide her seal, which seemed to remain on her skin as evidence of the chakra that had been used for both the jutsu and the seal.  
  
"Fine." She sighed and wrapped the protector around her waist. "Is that it?" She was starting to get a little frustrated.  
  
"Hai!" Tsunade crowed cheerfully. Naruto glared at her and mumbled under her breath about the emergence of her sadistic side.  
  
Kakashi held up his hand to stop them. "Chotto... what about a name?"  
  
"What about it?"  
  
"You don't honestly expect to get away with living as 'Naruto' for the next how-ever-many weeks, do you?" Naruto frowned again. She'd been doing a lot of that, lately. "Don't you plan on staying with team 7 and completing missions with us?"  
  
"Well, then... how about... Naru-KO!" She proudly exclaimed. Kakashi smiled patronizingly at the girl.  
  
"No."  
  
"Nani yo?! Why not?!"  
  
"It's even stupider than keeping the name Naruto. If Sasuke and Sakura can't figure out who you are from that name alone, then they deserve to be fooled." She folded her arms across her chest and huffed.  
  
"Ne, how about something like the name of your favourite colour, or food?" Tsunade offered. Kakashi grimaced, wondering if the Hokage even knew what she was asking.  
  
"Ramen?" He snickered. Tsunade looked at him confused, before realising what she'd just suggested. She shrugged her shoulders and tapped her chin trying to think of another idea.  
  
"Sensei!" Naruto exclaimed excitedly. The silver-haired jounin looked at him, confused.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"No! I mean make up a name from someone else's name!" Kakashi nodded for him to go on. "Well, how 'bout my three sensei."  
  
"Iruka, Kakashi and Jiraiya?"  
  
"Hai! I.Ka.Ji... Ikaji!"  
  
"No." His present sensei blurted almost immediately. Naruto blinked in surprise before growling under her breath.  
  
"WHY NOT?!" She yelled, clenching her hands into fists. When she got no reply, she tried another name.  
  
"Ru... Ka... Ra?" Tsunade sat down on the ledge and her expression mirrored the jounin's. Terrifically unimpressed.  
  
"Iie." Tsunade chuckled under her breath, attracting both sets of eyes. "Why don't we just leave her with Naruko?" She offered. "If Sasuke and Sakura don't figure out who she is from that name then they deserve to be tricked by the jutsu." Naruto frowned at her mocking tone, but kept trying.  
  
"Kashii?" Kakashi laughed.  
  
"Those don't even sound like real names, much less girls' names. Try the last syllables in each of our names; it might sound a little better."  
  
"Ka... Shi... Ya? Kashiya?" He nodded and looked to Tsunade for her approval. She smiled fondly.  
  
"I like it." She agreed. 'Kashiya' sighed in relief.  
  
"Ne, Shiya-chan, if you're going to do shopping, you better hurry. We're supposed to have a mission later in the afternoon." The silver-haired man turned to leave.  
  
"Don't call me Shiya-chan." Kashiya snapped, but Tsunade put her hand on the girl's shoulder to calm her down.  
  
"Well he can't very well go around calling you Shiya-kun." The young girl's shoulders sagged dejectedly under the woman's palm. She knew they were both right, it was just annoying that they had to be right so often.  
  
"SO now that you have a new name, Shiya-chan, you need some new clothes." Shiya looked up, and grinned. She figured that with an entirely new identity she could do some major payback for Sasuke's all-too-convincing rendition of Naruto's specialty. She nodded before something else dawned on her.  
  
"I'm Kashiya now, ne?" She asked tentatively. The Hokage nodded. "Not Naruto?"  
  
"Of course you're still Naruto, it's just to everyone else you're a new person." The young blonde's eyes lit up at that revelation. She had an entirely fresh start. No one would look down on her. No one would treat her any differently because of the Kitsune. She slapped a large goofy grin on her face and hugged Tsunade tightly. Suddenly, she had the freedom she'd always dreamed of.  
  
***  
  
Throughout the entire village, Shiya noticed not a single person gave her a second glance, much less the barely concealed glares Naruto had always been used to. Some of the common villagers even smiled at her as she passed. Maybe life stuck in Oiroke no Jutsu wouldn't be as bad as she'd originally thought.  
  
"Konnichiwa, Konohamaru-kun!" Tsunade greeted, the boy just as he was running by. Shiya froze in her steps, but the boy merely looked up and offered a smile and kept going as if nothing were out of the ordinary. He didn't even mention the girl's presence. Even Ebisu, who they met seconds later (chasing after the young boy), had forgotten about Naruto's current condition. No doubt, he thought it would only last for a couple of hours and nothing more.  
  
When they got to the dressmaker's little hut, Tsunade knocked twice before opening the door. The little shop was cluttered with all sorts of sewing needles and zippers and pieces of unused mesh. Even the little register was buried under bolts of green and blue fabric. The tiny bells on the door sounded merrily as the door shut behind them.  
  
"Tsunade-sama!" The dressmaker exclaimed, appearing at their side almost immediately and ushered them inside. Shiya shrunk back, knowing this woman had usually been one of the angrier villagers when Naruto used to wander the streets, but she just smiled fondly at her. "What can I do for you two today?" Tsunade nudged the nervous girl forward. Now that there was no one around her, she became self-conscious, and the mirrors didn't help.  
  
"This is my... ano... niece, Shiya-chan." She said, introducing the girl. "Could you help us with a suitable outfit? I was thinking something conservative, but accentuated her best features." She grinned. The woman nodded and began rummaging through her drawers and shelves for the perfect fabrics.  
  
"Colour?" She asked, and Shiya almost giggled seeing the small woman burying herself under pounds of multicoloured fabrics, but slapped a hand across her mouth just before the sound could escape. Naruto had never giggled before in his life. She shuddered at the thought, and kept watching the woman looking through the piles.  
  
"Ano... her eyes are a beautiful sky-blue. Why not a slightly darker shade to bring them out a bit more?" Tsunade offered. The woman peeked out her head and gave Shiya another head-to-toe glance before nodding in agreement.  
  
"Hai, if her hair had been any other colour it might not have worked. Good call, Hokage-sama!" She smiled and disappeared again. Shiya blinked, not entirely understanding the problem with colours. Women never ceased to confuse him completely, and the broad grin on Tsunade's face only seemed to make Shiya ever the more edgy about the whole new outfit thing.  
  
***  
  
By the time Tsunade had finally finished with the store, they had enough clothing to last Shiya for a good couple of years, something she was hoping, no *praying* wasn't a precaution and just Tsunade's money habits. The Hokage had gotten her a normal outfit to wear on the missions, but kept having to smack the girl's hand for trying to pull the shirt down to cover her stomach. The navy skin-tight shirt bore her entire midriff and left her shoulders bare. Kakashi's facemask was so similar in colour that it appeared to be attached to the shirt. The shirt alone wouldn't have been much of a problem for her, except the moment she pulled them on, she could have sworn her shorts were exactly the same as Sasuke's, only dark blue. The idea of wearing Sasuke's shorts; along with the too tight, too small top; and the arm-bands that looked similar to Ino's (Naruto had always wanted to try them out), made her slightly self-conscious.  
  
When she tried to bring it up with Tsunade, the woman merely brushed it off and said it was a good thing and it would help her remember who she was. She was no longer Naruto in body, but a finely dressed young woman.  
  
"I'll make sure your clothes get back to your apartment, if you want to go ahead and meet with Kakashi, early before your mission. He should be by the bridge." Shiya nodded and left Tsunade with all of her bags, walking slowly to the other side of the shops. She could have sworn it would give him a great excuse for being late.  
  
***  
  
When Shiya showed up at the bridge, her sensei was no where to be seen, no surprise. She pulled herself up to sit on the bridge's railing, and slouched over in a big sigh. She rested her elbows on her knees and cupped her chin in her hands, getting comfortable. She didn't have to wait as long as she thought, as she felt a presence beside her.  
  
"Girls don't normally sit in such a masculine pose." Kakashi stated. Shiya turned her head to find her sensei crouched beside her on the railing. "They usually keep their legs closed. Men might see it as an invitation to 'other' things." He grinned lecherously, beneath his mask.  
  
"HENTAI!!" She screamed, jumping backwards and snapping her knees together. "Why are you late!!?" He jumped gracefully to the wooden planks and thought to himself for a moment.  
  
"I was helping carve the third Hokage's head into the Hokage Mountain."  
  
"Usotsuki." She growled under her breath. "Are you late on purpose just so you can use those lame excuses?"  
  
"Maybe." He replied, noncommittally. "After all... you're the only people I get to use these extremely creative excuses on!" Shiya rolled her eyes.  
  
"No they're not. The Third's head's been on that mountain since before I was born, baka!" She yelled. Kakashi turned to the mountain.  
  
"Ha ha... What do you know? You're right!" He laughed and put a hand behind his head thoughtfully. "Guess I'll have to scrap that one, ne?" Shiya rolled her eyes again and sighed.  
  
"Let's just go meet Sasuke and Sakura, I'm dying to see what I can and cannot do in this body." She started walking to where they were supposed to meet his two team mates. "I better be able to do something, or that bastard is dead!" She growled to herself.  
  
***  
  
"You're late!!!" Sakura screeched when Kakashi finally showed up.  
  
"I was waiting to pick up the Hokage's niece!" He explained, waving his hands in front of him.  
  
"USOTSUKI!!"  
  
"Kakashi-san, couldn't you be on time for once in your life?" Sasuke asked bitterly. He was dressed in long black jeans and a very old, 'Naruto- styled' orange t-shirt with a big black spiral in the front. "It's bad enough having to deal with Naruto's pranks all day long. I had to dig up this shirt after searching through ten different PINK closets."  
  
"Hai, and my hair will never be the same thanks to that idiot." Kakashi turned his attention from Sasuke to look at Sakura, noticing that her hair had been trimmed extra short and still had traces of the bubble gum.  
  
"Well, that idiot is out on a solitary mission for the next month or so. Tsunade sent him out to do some reconnaissance outside of the village, nothing too risky. And I wasn't lying when I said that I was waiting for someone. Sasuke, Sakura, meet Kashiya, Tsunade-sama's niece." He motioned the blond girl to step forward.  
  
Biting her lip and trying to remember she wasn't Naruto to them anymore, she bowed politely in greeting.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
So... how am I doing with the cliché-ness of it all? Don't hesitate to bash me if I let even one toe out of line... I hope the name thing was satisfactory... I can't stand people who are so unoriginal and name her NaruKO. *shudders* It's exactly as Tsunade says... only a really big idiot wouldn't notice who he was right off the bat... face mask or none. (sorry if I offended anyone with that remark... even though I meant every word). 


	20. Walking on Water

Wow... I can't believe how many reviews I got on the first day 19 was posted... 12!!! Well, as you can probably tell I'm in a good mood. What a great way to celebrate a birthday. Thank you everyone.  
  
I guess I'm doing okay by your standards... and I got a review that I'm going to have to try to remember... said something about 'stop worrying if it's cliché and write the damn thing'. Of course it wasn't that rude... but that was the general message. I'll try.  
  
Oh and to morphy-yamc I never actually thought about Kashiya's chest... it was just that Tsunade-hime was blonde... heh heh...  
  
I hope no one expects Sasuke to fall in love with Kashiya... I can promise you he won't, though I can't guarantee his reaction to Naruto. If you hadn't already noticed... he's beginning the long and tedious process of falling in love with the boy...  
  
Chapter Title: 20. Walking on Water  
  
"Sasuke, Sakura, meet Kashiya, Tsunade-sama's niece." Sasuke looked up at the entrance of a new team mate and the first thing he noticed was how startlingly similar to Naruto's Oiroke no jutsu she looked. He glared lightly at the girl, not trusting for a second who she was claiming to be, but kept his mouth shut for the time being.  
  
Sakura, on the other hand, was wondering if this new girl would be after Sasuke. She may have become more lenient with him in the last couple of years, but there was no way she'd just roll over and let some new girl steal HER Sasuke.  
  
Seeing the double glares from her team mates, Shiya shuddered, wondering if she was really that recognisable. Ignoring her insecurities, she decided to keep up with her charade.  
  
"Konnichiwa, minna-san." She bowed respectfully.  
  
"She'll be joining us for a little while." Kakashi explained. They both nodded, resignedly, and greeted their new team mate. Shiya hesitated, knowing Sasuke didn't trust her one bit, but the mask on her face reminded her that outwardly she wasn't the same person anymore.  
  
"Hn." Sasuke grunted, still seemingly upset. "That dobe should have stayed here." Everyone looked at him for an explanation, and Shiya had to bite her tongue to keep from retorting. He had to be testing her. "It was his birthday today and we never even got the chance to wish him a happy birthday." Sakura looked at him, confusion written all over her features.  
  
"It was his birthday today?" She asked. "Is that why he pranked us all? He thought we forgot? I didn't even know." Sasuke rolled his eyes.  
  
"Baka!!" Sasuke rolled his eyes at her. "He was born the day they sealed the Kyuubi."  
  
"Oh, yeah." She whispered, ashamed that she'd forgotten that. Shiya started to feel a little guilty for all the pranks she'd pulled that morning, but got an idea.  
  
"So, who is this Naruto person?" She asked sweetly. Kakashi smacked her in the back of the head for asking, but Sakura answered before the question could be taken back.  
  
"He's a friend and team mate of ours." She explained.  
  
"Friend?" Shiya repeated. Sasuke nodded, deciding to ignore his doubts about her. He figured that there was no way Naruto would have gotten past Kakashi so easily so she had to be telling the truth. He trusted their teacher to never lead them astray without good reason, and Naruto's tricks would never be a good reason.  
  
"Hai, he's loud-mouthed, obnoxious and dead last in our graduating class, but he's one of my closest friends." He explained. Kakashi held in his sigh of relief, and Shiya grinned broadly to know that they actually considered Naruto a friend of theirs. She was glad even the anti-social Sasuke still considered him his closest friend. Kakashi had been worried that they would say something about the boy while he was 'gone' and it would spark Kashiya to do or say something to give herself away. He was surprised that she'd had enough self-control to avoid the usual comebacks when Sasuke had called Naruto all those things.  
  
"So are we just going to stand here?" Shiya spoke up suddenly. Kakashi nodded and lead them off to another training session.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke clutched his chest, struggling with his breathing. Kakashi had told him to start trying to concentrate his Chidori into a more controlled precise jutsu, but he was still having a little difficulty focusing on his chakra. Sitting down on the soft grass, he looked over to where Kakashi and Shiya were talking in private. He still had his doubts about her identity, but had decided to just shrug them off. Maybe he was just training a little too hard in the last few months and the stress was starting to get to him.  
  
Taking a deep breath and standing back up, he straightened his back and looked at the tree he'd been attacking. It was already toppled over and he was still using it to practice. He looked at his hand, feeling it itch slightly and saw a slight burn developing in his palm. He winced, realising he was way too uptight and his control over the jutsu was too tightly reigned in. He was 'way too' a lot of things.  
  
Focusing on what remained of the tree stump, Sasuke continued with other aspects of his training.  
  
***  
  
Shiya frowned watching Sasuke try to work off his stress and didn't notice Kakashi's impatience until he snapped his fingers in front of her face to get back her attention.  
  
"When you've finished drooling over Sasuke, I'd like to talk about what sort of jutsus you can and can't do in front of these two." He'd been lecturing her for the last ten minutes and her mind began to wander.  
  
"I was not drooling over that bastard." She muttered under her breath. He ignored her comment and continued on.  
  
"You can't do Kage Bunshin or Rasengan, because they both know those are Naruto's specialty moves. They'll only serve to get you in a lot of trouble, and I won't be the one to help get you out of it." Shiya nodded, not really listening. "If you can figure out a way to use Rasengan in another way then by all means try. There's also Kawarimi, and Henge..." She nodded, getting an idea.  
  
Crouching in to herself, in an attempt to cover her hand, she tested out her theory with a little amount of chakra. She smirked when she found the limit to how far from her palm she could have the ball without losing control of it. She straightened up and added more chakra to the spinning orb. Before Sasuke or Sakura could recognise the move, she added a few shuriken to the mix and threw the ball as hard as she could at the nearest tree, putting all her weight into the lunge. The trunk of the tree imploded and the shuriken were blasted through the tree and into the one directly behind it with a loud crack. Kakashi smiled, impressed with the quick development, and the other two stared at the girl in amazement.  
  
Shiya turned around at the silence and chuckled nervously, wondering if either Sasuke or Sakura had remembered the move and figured her out.  
  
"Sugoi desu!!" Sakura exclaimed and, forgetting her earlier jealousy, ran up to the girl eagerly. "Do you think you can help me with my training?" She asked. Shiya looked at Sasuke for a moment to see his reaction but all she got was a shake of the head as the boy got over his amazement and moved on to another tree. It looked like he had stopped doubting her identity. Grinning, she accepted her team mate's request, marvelling that she was even talking to the pink-haired girl.  
  
"There's a lake just a little bit away from here, if you wanted to try something Perv- er... one of... my aunt's friends helped me learn." Shiya offered. She'd have to watch how she talked from now on. She almost screwed everything up with that one stupid nickname for Jiraiya and even as a girl she would never admit that Ebisu had taught her anything. Sakura nodded, not even noticing the blunder and, with Kakashi's permission, the two girls went to the lake to train. Kakashi's only catch was they had to stay within hearing distance, just in case.  
  
After a couple of minutes they reached the water's edge and Sakura called back to Kakashi to make sure they were still close enough. When they heard the echoing shout she turned to the blonde, looking attentive.  
  
"Well, it's actually like walking up trees." Shiya started.  
  
"You know about our training?" Sakura interrupted, causing Shiya to nearly choke.  
  
"Ah... yeah. I was... speaking to Kakashi before we got here. He told me about it." She explained quickly. The pink-haired girl thought about it for a second before nodding. Shiya almost sagged in a sigh of relief. She'd have to kick herself when she got home. Too many close calls.  
  
"Okay, let's see what I remember from that closet-pervert, Ebisu." She muttered under her breath. Raising her voice, she beckoned Sakura closer to the water. "The point of it is to be able to control how much chakra you use... or something like that. You just need to use enough chakra to keep yourself floating." Sakura nodded, waiting for her to continue. "So first you gather your chakra to your feet and then while you walk and expel chakra, you match the amount you use to the weight of your body... so then you use enough to keep you walking right at water level." She stepped up to the water's edge and stepped confidently onto the surface of the water and walked out a little bit. When she turned back, she grinned proudly (though Sakura could only see it in her eyes) and did a little spin to show off. Over the years, Naruto had practiced this technique so many times that he'd become quite the expert in it and used little to no thought in his chakra control. Everything just was instinctive.  
  
"Yanno, it's almost like using your chakra like stilts... or something... maybe it's like making the chakra into little shoes to..." She trailed off, noticing that the more she spoke the less sense she was making to herself. She laughed and put a hand behind her head nervously, waiting for Sakura to come out and try it.  
  
She looked at the blond who was half way out onto the lake and decided it wouldn't hurt to try it, not to mention between her and the other two boys on her team, she'd always been the best at chakra control and she did reach the top of the tree faster than either of them. So, she took her tentative first step onto the water, remembering what Shiya had told her about matching her chakra to her body weight. She let out a whoop when her foot didn't immediately sink. Because she'd already gained so much control over her chakra throughout the years, this was actually fairly easy for her, and realising this, she walked out confidently to the middle of the lake to join her new friend. Her steps were still slightly awkward, but she had the basics down.  
  
"Wanna spar out here?" Shiya asked after a few minutes of silence. Sakura looked up, surprised and tested her footing on the water.  
  
"Why not?" She replied with a slight smile. "It should be interesting." Shiya grinned and pulled out a kunai.  
  
"To tell you the truth, I've never actually sparred with anyone on the water." She exclaimed. Sakura nodded in agreement, and pulled out a couple of her own knives.  
  
"You do realise we're probably going to lose a lot of weapons this way?" The pink-haired kunoichi asked, only slightly worried.  
  
"Nee, we'll just get Hinata or Neji to find them for us later." Shiya chuckled and lunged before the words could settle into Sakura's brain. Though Shiya hadn't ever used that body to fight, she found out quickly that movements that before might have looked clunky and slow now flowed with liquid grace. She smirked to herself realising that puberty wasn't a hindrance anymore since she'd done the jutsu so many times she was comfortable with the familiar limbs. They weren't any longer or wider or any different than they had been three and four years ago.  
  
She attacked her team mate with everything she had, before noticing too late that Sakura still wasn't very comfortable walking on the water. A quick kick to the gut had the girl sent splashing into the water with a sharp yell.  
  
Within seconds the other two guys came bursting out of the bushes, expecting to see a number of enemy ninjas attacking the two girls. They only found Shiya walking calmly towards the land, with Sakura swimming not too far behind her. The blond girl had offered to help her back onto the surface of the water, but Sakura was still a little shaky from her fall and had decided on getting out of the water the old-fashioned way.  
  
"What happened?" Kakashi asked with a bemused glint in his eye.  
  
"I was just doing a little bit of training with Sakura-chan." Shiya explained. "I didn't expect her to be so shaky on the water. I accidentally kicked her and she lost her balance." Turning to the soaking girl who was just climbing out of the lake, she offered her hand in apology. "Sumimasen. I heard that your other team mate, Naruto, knows how to walk on water, too, just in case you wanted to train with someone when I leave." She offered. Sakura nodded and smiled back, taking the hand.  
  
Deciding not to let the opportunity pass her by, Shiya kept a hold of Sakura's hand and led the girl back to the little clearing where they were originally training so the poor girl could dry up a little before they went back.  
  
"Arigatou, Shiya-chan." Sakura whispered.  
  
"Do itamashite." The blond grinned back through the fabric of Kakashi's facemask. Of course, she didn't notice the sudden look of interest that flashed across Sasuke's face. It wasn't the look of love, but Kakashi smirked, knowing that Naruto as Kashiya had still managed to spark Sasuke's desire for a good challenge and a strong opponent. It didn't matter to the young boy whether she was a girl or not; she was strong, was powerful, and that alone was something he still lusted after, even knowing that same craving was the one thing that ended Orochimaru's life.  
  
***  
  
"Sorry for using so much force in that kick, Sakura-chan." Shiya repeated, glancing guiltily at the girl who was huddled shivering under Kakashi's big stuffed vest. The girl looked up and smiled.  
  
"Stop worrying, Shiya-chan. You can't be so worried every time you kick an enemy into the water, so training shouldn't be any different. I just need to get used to the balance thing." She was about to argue that Sakura was far from an enemy when Sasuke grabbed her by the arm.  
  
"OI!" She yelled, narrowing her eyes at the boy. "That hurts!" She would have said more, but a slight clearing of Kakashi's throat reminded her that she wasn't Naruto anymore and she couldn't respond that way to Sasuke.  
  
"Hn." The dark-haired boy replied, ignoring the tight hold he had on her. "Let's have a quick match, Kashiya-san." Her eyes brightened considerably and Sasuke let go of her, taking her reaction as a yes.  
  
"Go easy on her, she's a girl." Kakashi warned Sasuke, causing Shiya to narrow her eyes at her sensei this time.  
  
"Why should he go easy on me just cause I'm a girl?!" She retorted. "I'll have you know I could beat him any day, any time." Placing her hands on her hips smugly, she went to stick her tongue out at them both, but the fabric got in the way, forcing her to settle with pulling down her eyelid. "NYAH!"  
  
"What a child." Sasuke deadpanned, irritating her even more.  
  
"Oh yeah?!" She yelled, running at him and pulling out a kunai. He smirked and tensed himself for her attack, but before he could receive her attack she collapsed into a cloud of smoke, just a mere clone.  
  
Kakashi was surprised that Shiya was refraining from using her Kage Bunshin and only relying on the regular Bunshin. Another Shiya jumped at the boy right beside the remaining cloud only to disappear just as Sasuke lunged at her. It took three more clones for the boy to finally start getting really irritated.  
  
"Any day, any time, ne?" He taunted, seeing another clone coming at him. He thrust his kunai into the clone, but instead of disappearing in a poof of smoke, like all the others, his kunai made contact and went in deep. He almost gasped in shock, afraid he'd done some serious damage (he'd aimed for the heart), when he saw and felt another poof of smoke. When the smoke cleared, he found his kunai deeply embedded in a piece of wood. Growling loudly, he cursed himself for letting the girl's tactics get to him when something tackled him from above, taking him totally off guard.  
  
Both he and Shiya landed in the dirt and began rolling around, trying to get the upper hand. The blond had landed squarely on Sasuke's back and wrapped her limbs tightly around his body to prevent herself from getting dislodged easily. During a quick pause in their wrestling Shiya leaned over and put her lips as close to Sasuke's ear as he'd allow.  
  
"Want to go out with me?" She whispered softly, and pressed her body closer to his. He hesitated before replying.  
  
"Iie, you're not my type, Kashiya-san." He grumbled politely. She laughed, not letting him get off that easily. She'd make Sasuke suffer for tricking her with her own jutsu.  
  
"And just what is your type? Pink hair and green eyes?" It came out much more bitterly than she'd wanted, but it was too late to take back the words.  
  
"No... male." He smirked, jumping up from the ground, causing Shiya to fall off his back in surprise. She hadn't expected THAT answer. He turned to her, a smug look etched into his features. "It was a joke, Shiya-chan." He snorted at her shocked expression.  
  
No one else had heard their conversation, and Shiya cursed inwardly, knowing she'd never be able to use this against him in the future when she returned to her normal, MALE body, else he'd know who she really was.  
  
"Baka!" She exclaimed, both to him and herself, and stood up, dusting herself off. She just wasn't used to Sasuke's jokes. "Don't expect me to ask you out again!" She shouted to him as he began walking to the main part of the village. "I'm not like your stupid fan club; next time it'll be YOU asking ME, no, BEGGING me for a date." She grinned proudly and rushed to Sakura's side to help her back to the village.  
  
Kakashi smirked, watching his students' dramas unfold in front of his very eyes. Even as a girl, Naruto was still trying to upstage the young prodigy. He would have laughed out loud, but then he wouldn't want to have to explain to a very angry Kashiya why he was making fun of her... even if he knew he wasn't.  
  
***  
  
After watching Sasuke drift off towards his house and making sure Sakura made it safely to her own warm home, Shiya and Kakashi began walking to her apartment.  
  
"Tsunade was talking to me earlier," Kakashi began, walking ahead of the sulking girl. She was still upset that Sasuke had surprised her so much with such a simple comment. "And she believes it's best to say that Naruto allowed you to use his apartment while he was away on his mission, just in case anybody asks." He looked out the corner of his eye to see the blond nod her head in agreement. She didn't look to happy, and usually Naruto was always full of energy. Maybe something that happened during her fight with Sasuke put her off. He shrugged off the idea as they finally reached her apartment and bowed politely to her.  
  
"Happy Birthday!" He said quietly, offering the girl a wink, before he turned around to go, disappearing around the corner. She sighed deeply, not really caring that it was her birthday and opening the door to her house.  
  
"Tadaima." She muttered to the dark and empty house and slammed the door so hard the frame shook. She wanted to do nothing more than flop down onto her bed and sleep away all her worries. Who knew, maybe sleep would be enough to get rid of Ebisu's seal. She didn't know if she could handle being stuck in a female body for a whole week, let alone a full month.  
  
"Welcome home, Naruto-kun." A deep voice chuckled from the darkness. "That jutsu's not fooling anyone, dobe."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
To kkoganei about the whole concealer and make-up option, it wouldn't work. For one, there's the fighting which would probably mean close contact... and one smudge could end it all for Naruto. And the second... if you were a boy... would YOU want to wear a pound of concealer to hide your whiskers? Another thing is, I read an interview with Kakashi (via Kishimoto) and they asked him about the facemask and he says it's very comfortable and VERY breathable...  
  
Yeah, I know I talk too much. I hope everyone enjoyed a long chapter. I'm glad a lot of you noticed the first clump was dark... It's going to get a lot darker, so I'm trying to squeeze little bits of light fluffy moments here and there.  
  
TEASER!! (cause I haven't done that in so long)  
  
Next Chapter: 21. Follow the Sun  
  
"What are you doing here, Hatake-san?" He asked in a clipped tone. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the formality.  
  
"We're back to family names, Umino-kun?" He retorted. Iruka's body was tense, and Kakashi's relaxed tones were starting to make him even edgier.  
  
"Don't put this on me. You were the one acting cold to me." Kakashi sighed and turned his gaze to outside the window.  
  
"Even though there are no actual battles, we're still at war. Konoha versus Suna."  
  
"But WE are not!" Iruka snapped. "You make it sound like we're enemies, and then expect me to continue to follow you around like it doesn't hurt me."  
  
"Where's Shiya?" He changed the subject, calling out to the girl.  
  
"Stop avoiding it, Kakashi." Iruka spoke up. "You can't keep taking me for granted like this. There may come a day when I just give up and move on. Then you'll find out where your aloofness is taking you. The war will end, Kakashi, but don't expect me to be waiting for you."  
  
***  
  
Hee hee. I like torturing these two. And there's no hints as to how the whole Sasuke-Naruto confrontation went either. :D Later days...  
  
(Oh! I wonder who can guess my reasoning for that (21) chapter title... and where it came from)  
  
WAHAHAH!! CLIFFHANGER!!! 


	21. Follow the Sun

I figure you won't read this so Author's Notes are at the bottom...  
  
Chapter Title: 21. Follow the Sun  
  
"Welcome home, Naruto-kun." A deep voice chuckled from the darkness. "That jutsu's not fooling anyone, dobe." Shiya froze in her tracks and nearly felt her heart stop. How could he have figured it out so quickly?! Sure, he was the genius Uchiha prodigy... who had the power of the... Sharingan... in his blood. She cursed under her breath for forgetting that. Could he really see through the jutsu? Or could he just sense that it was a jutsu. She took a deep breath, ready to test her theory.  
  
"What are you talking about?" She asked, quietly.  
  
"Don't act stupid, dobe." She clenched her jaw shut to avoid the natural instinct to snap back. "Release the damned jutsu. I already know it's you, why else would you have come back here?" Shiya grinned realising that Sasuke couldn't really see that she was Naruto and only assumed she was because she'd gone back to the apartment. Under normal circumstances the jutsu would have been nothing against his Sharingan, but combined with Ebisu's seal, it seemed to block Sasuke from being able to see through her.  
  
"Before Naruto-kun left, he told my aunt that he'd let me stay here for the duration of my visit, and until he came back." She retorted, using Kakashi's excuse. "I don't know why you'd think I was him. I think you need your eyes checked, I'm a g-i-r-l, Sasuke-kun." She chuckled, knowing that Kashiya wouldn't really know much about Sasuke's Sharingan eye to begin with. "Or are you just angry that I'm not going to chase after you?"  
  
She moved into the apartment, slightly unnerved by the darkness and, feeling around, found the switch to turn on the lights. Standing in the middle of the room, Sasuke looked stiff and uncomfortable, and even with the lights on he made the space around him seem dark.  
  
"You're too proud to ask me out yourself, aren't you?" She prodded, noticing how nervous he seemed. Maybe he just wasn't used to another person with the same strength as Naruto. The boy shifted on his feet, but didn't make any move to leave.  
  
"Of course not. I already said you aren't my type." He said quietly, but sternly. Shiya rolled her eyes and moved closer to him. She poked him in the chest and let out a mocking laugh.  
  
"Then prove it!" She challenged.  
  
"I'm not stupid like you, Kashiya-san. You just want me to ask you out."  
  
"So then why aren't you?"  
  
"You obviously weren't listening the first time I said it. You're not-" Shiya held up her hand stopping him in mid-sentence.  
  
"I heard you." She sighed exasperatedly. "You don't like anyone do you? Is that it? Or are you into guys like you said before?" She grinned mischievously. "OR could it be that you're just asexual?" He sighed pointedly and pushed her out of his personal space.  
  
"Okay, I get it, you're NOT Naruto." He exclaimed. "He wouldn't care this much about who I liked or didn't like, just so long as I was out of the way so that Sakura-chan would go out with him." Shiya was thankful for the facemask for once, when her jaw dropped and a look of intense sadness overcame her delicate features. Sasuke's comment struck a chord deep within her to know that the dark-haired genin thought so little of Naruto, but all he could see were her furrowed eyebrows, which made her look angry more than hurt.  
  
"Why don't you leave, Sasuke-kun?" She asked, her voice clipped. "After all, this is not your house and you DID break in." He nodded shortly and brushed past her. Truthfully, he was still slightly suspicious of her, but she had excuses for every flaw he could find. Kakashi wouldn't be so easily fooled, nor would he be in on Naruto's pranks, and even Tsunade was a likely story. The girl wouldn't have said the woman was her aunt if Tsunade wasn't. No doubt she had better things to do than be an alibi for the blond boy's daily pranks. He sighed, finally deciding to ignore his eyes and trust the girl. It was the first time he'd been wrong with his Sharingan, but he wasn't entirely surprised as there was only one other Sharingan user in the village and Kakashi didn't have time to train him exclusively.  
  
"It's not your house either, Kashiya-san." He snapped, agitated by her short temper towards him. The dark-haired shinobi left Naruto's apartment without another word.  
  
After making sure her door was securely locked, and all the windows were tightly sealed to protect her from more 'intruders', Shiya flopped down onto her mattress and pulled off Kakashi's facemask. The fabric had been extremely breathable, and she was surprised that it was able to stay in place for the whole day without her having to continuously adjust it. However, it didn't matter how comfortable it was, she was thankful to be able to just get out of it. Lying down lazily, Shiya groaned as she felt her training come back to hit her full force with aches and pains and she was deathly tired. The mattress was so comfortable, if not lumpy in a few places, and even though the thought of Ramen sounded good, she was way too comfortable to get up and wait for the three minutes for it to get ready.  
  
"Screw dinner for tonight." She muttered to herself. "It's too far away." She let out a big yawn and rolled over, muttering curses as her muscles groaned in protest. "Some birthday..." She mumbled as sleep claimed her for the night.  
  
***  
  
A couple of mornings later Shiya was woken by the sound of knocking. She got up from her bed and scratched her head. She never expected anyone, and Kakashi hadn't said anything about missions, so there shouldn't be anyone at the door. But there was someone, as the knocking became even louder. Muttering something about unholy hours of the day (even though it was already ten o'clock), she unlocked and opened the door to receive a fist over the head.  
  
"Itai!!!!!" She screamed, glaring spitefully at her attacker, who was none other than Iruka. "What was that for, Iruka-sensei?"  
  
"Don't you 'Iruka-sensei' me!" He didn't look too happy and Shiya couldn't think of what the problem was. "What if I'd been Sasuke or Sakura coming to your door?!" She frowned at the man, still not getting the bigger picture.  
  
"Ano... you wouldn't have hit me?" She guessed, which only served to get her another smack to the head.  
  
"It's only because you're really a guy that I'm allowed to do this." He muttered to himself before leaning over the young blond girl angrily. "WHERE'S YOUR FACE MASK!?" He yelled. Shiya's face shone in understanding, before it set in. She'd gone to the door without it on.  
  
"Oops." She chuckled nervously. "Guess I'm still not used to wearing it when I'm at home, alone." He didn't look too amused.  
  
"I'm just going to have to keep coming over until you get into the habit of putting it on before you answer the door." Shiya sighed, nodding her head every couple of seconds through her old sensei's ten minute lecture. He went over everything form Kakashi spending good money for them, right down to him and Tsunade risking their necks to make sure he stays safe. Avoiding the urge to roll her eyes she let her thoughts drift off.  
  
Since that night, Sasuke had been at least civil towards her, and although he seemed to take an interest in her, it was only while they were training. Otherwise he hardly looked at her, save when she did something remarkably 'Naruto-esque', and then he'd watch her for a couple of minutes before returning his gaze to what ever he was doing before. Sakura on the other hand, found her to be quite a good friend, except for when the blonde was trying to impress Sasuke. She saw a rival in Kashiya and rather than fight with her, the way her and Ino tended to do, she had all but adopted the new girl as a second sister. Naruto would have been ecstatic but the more time Shiya spent at the kunoichi's side, the more... she couldn't quite put her finger on it but she was starting to see the girl on a much lower pedestal. But a pedestal none the less and, to Shiya, that's all that still mattered.  
  
"ARE YOU LISTENING TO ME?!" Iruka yelled into one of her ears. She winced and took a step back.  
  
"Obviously not, or you wouldn't have had to ask." Kakashi replied from behind them. He was sitting leisurely in the window, his face buried in a very old copy of Icha Icha Paradaisu. He may have read all three volumes already, but now it was no longer about reading, and more about showing off. He enjoyed flaunting the 'adult' book in his students' faces. He also had a strange taste for flaunting it for Iruka, as well.  
  
"Go put it on, before anymore people come in and figure you out." Iruka ordered, ignoring the jounin's presence altogether. Grumbling to herself, Shiya dragged her feet back to her bedroom for the fabric.  
  
"What are you doing here, Hatake-san?" He asked in a clipped tone. Kakashi raised an eyebrow at the formality.  
  
"We're back to family names, Umino-kun?" He retorted. Iruka's body was tense, and Kakashi's relaxed tones were starting to make him even edgier.  
  
"Don't put this on me. You were the one acting cold to me." Kakashi sighed and turned his gaze to outside the window.  
  
"Even though there are no actual battles, we're still at war. Konoha versus Suna."  
  
"But WE are not!" Iruka snapped. "You make it sound like we're enemies, and then expect me to continue to follow you around like it doesn't hurt me."  
  
"Where's Shiya?" He changed the subject, calling out to the girl.  
  
"Iie! Matte, matte. I can't find it. Chotto! I know I left it here somewhere..." She trailed off, continuing to search for it.  
  
"Stop avoiding it, Kakashi." Iruka spoke up. "You can't keep taking me for granted like this. There may come a day when I just give up and move on. Then you'll find out where your aloofness is taking you. The war will end, Kakashi, but don't expect me to be waiting for you. I know you like me. I saw it in your eyes before Sand attacked. I see it all the time, and sometimes when you're acting like this, I begin to lose hope. If one day you look to see I've gone, don't be surprised." He turned sharply and walked to the door. "Tell Kashiya that I left to go back to my classes." He exclaimed before walking out the door.  
  
Kakashi sighed, watching the man leave. He knew that Iruka wanted him to go right out that door after him, but Kakashi had a job to do, people to protect. He hated what it was doing to them, but he wasn't going to let Iruka be pulled into some quick relationship that put their lives in even greater danger than they already were. One slip and the enemy could have Kakashi eating out of a saucer from the floor just to keep Iruka safe. Even the possibility of having to kill Iruka for the greater good of the village had flitted across his mind, once or twice.  
  
He rested his book on his knee and looked outside, keeping his eye on Iruka's retreating figure. He didn't notice the now-masked girl pop up beside him.  
  
"Why did Iruka-san leave?" She asked, following his gaze.  
  
"Classes."  
  
"And why are you here?" He turned from the window and stood up.  
  
"Shikamaru was looking for you; he wanted to give you another mission."  
  
"Honto?!" She grinned happily. She's always loved working with Shikamaru, just because the boy trusted in her abilities and respected her. Kakashi nodded, a bemused look overcoming his face.  
  
"But we had to let him know that Naruto was out on a mission." He snickered. Instantly the girl's shoulders sagged and she clenched her fists.  
  
"This has been the WORST BIRTHDAY EVER!!" She yelled. Kakashi continued chuckling until the girl shot him a particularly nasty glare. "How'd you get in here anyways?" She could have sworn all the windows had been locked since Sasuke's 'break-in'.  
  
"Oh, a simple window-opening no jutsu." He grinned, reminding Shiya of the time Sasuke had used a similar line on her after she'd tried to pass as him to kiss Sakura. The smug look was exactly the same. She ground her teeth and closed her eyes, counting to ten. Sakura had taught her that one. Who knew, maybe she could use the calming method to list all the ways in which she was planning on murdering her sensei.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Okay, just a few things. In the first 24 hrs of the post I got a whopping 12 reviews... a total of 19 for the entire chapter. I was shocked... I've never gotten that many reviews for a chapter, EVER!! *grins* So I'm pretty much happy.  
  
Also, I'm surprised a lot of people thought the 'dobe' comment could have been someone other than Sasuke. Course... a lot of people thought Sasuke had found out so fast... nuh uh... trust me, you'll know it when Sasuke figures it out... he'll have proof. Anyways... to devilishly.sweet, Gaara won't show up for a little bit longer. To Calophi, you are one smart person, after all, it's way to early to end it so soon. And last but definitely not least, to Kuroi Hikari, it will NEVER turn into one of those stories, so don't worry.  
  
Oh yeah, last thing: Who can guess where I got the chapter title from? (Hint: Iruka's quote, "one day you look to see I've gone")  
  
I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I'm still working on 22 (should be done by the end of the weekend). 


	22. Who is Sasuke?

Okay, I know I took too long to post this chapter, but I've got some really good excuses this time. *fumbles with cue cards* My dog ate it! Er... no. *looks at another one* nope... grammy's still alive and kicking... *tosses the cue cards away* I kinda had to rewrite the whole thing cause the scene looked too... well... it was bloody shit to tell the truth. Now, of course, it's been somewhat fixed with the help of some fine people who will remain nameless (cause I forgot exactly who helped me... heh heh...).  
  
Entirely un-beta-ed and everything... plus some really funny angsting with Kashiya and a Chuunin vest. ^^u I aim to please.  
  
Chapter Title: 22. Who is Sasuke?  
  
After Shiya got over her murderous desire, Kakashi had told her what the real reason for his visit was. He'd been sent by Tsunade to gather the whole team to do a series of missions.  
  
"Since the smaller missions require my supervision, and you are technically a chuunin, I'll assist Sakura with them while you and Sasuke handle the single C-class mission later on in the evening, alright?" Kashiya sighed and nodded her head.  
  
"Why can't I work with Sakura-chan?" She asked. Kakashi shrugged noncommittally.  
  
"Boy-girl pairings?" He offered.  
  
"Lies." The girl crossed her arms over her chest, but Kakashi never offered another excuse. "So what is our mission?"  
  
"Meet me and Sakura-san at the hot-springs around seven and I'll let you know. There might not be any mission at all if the problem goes away by then." Kashiya frowned, but she couldn't complain. With the missions beginning to pick up again, she was glad to have any mission at all, and Sasuke wasn't so bad to work with; at least she knew she wouldn't be distracted by trying to show off to her pink-haired team mate. Kakashi nodded, and turned to the window to leave.  
  
"Why don't you use a door like normal people?" She asked, stopping him. He turned back and flashed a victory sign.  
  
"I've got to have SOME fun before I'm too old and incapacitated to do all this." He pointed to his silver hair. "You see all this? You three have been giving me grey hairs!" Kashiya snorted and walked away from the teacher.  
  
"Your hair has always been that colour, sensei, so you can't try and blame everything on me. You're just weird." She turned around, expecting the man to reply, but the window sill was empty and only the open window and he billowing curtains showed anyone had even been there.  
  
She sighed and dropped her arms back to her sides, looking around. She had a good half of the day left, and her place was a mess. Maybe she should start spring cleaning a little bit earlier this year. She was, after all, a couple of years overdue. The last time she could remember it being neat and tidy was... the last time Iruka came over and forced her into cleaning everything, and he'd stopped doing that years ago. She wrinkled her nose at the thought and bent over, picking up an empty ramen cup.  
  
"Might as well do something to keep me occupied." She muttered to herself and set about, moving from room to room, cleaning everything from the toilet bowl to the kitchen stove, where a hundred years worth of spilt ramen stains had been left.  
  
***  
  
She had finally made it to her room by the time the sun set, just after six. Her back ached from bending over so much, and her fingers resembled prunes with how much dishes she'd found lying all over the apartment. Some of the things she'd found had surprised even herself (like the rope of socks she'd knotted together when she was seven). Opening the closet to look for something warm to wear for their mission, she found her chuunin vest, gathering dust.  
  
Since Tsunade had given him the rank, Naruto had avoided the vest like the plague, and saw it, not as a symbol of pride in advancement, but one of shame and guilt. He'd never really felt he'd done much to deserve it. Not yet anyways. He was continuously vowing to do everything he could to earn the title.  
  
But, she looked down at her body, maybe for one night she could pretend she was something she'd always dreamed of. No one knew who she was, and technically it was hers. She pulled out the hanger with the dusty vest and ran her fingers delicately over the shoulders, removing some of the dust. Lifting her hand to her face, she rolled the traces of dust between her thumb and middle finger thoughtfully. She shook her head, as though to throw off an old memory, and roughly swatted away the rest of the dust.  
  
She rummaged around for another couple of seconds before pulling out a white and black version of his old orange and blue jacket, minus the side ornaments. It was getting colder and the vest alone wouldn't keep out enough heat. She placed both articles of clothing on the only clear space available on her bed and pulled out her hair elastics. The mirror beside her bed reflected her image in the dim light and she looked back to the cloths for a second. Tossing the elastics to the ground, she pulled out her hitai-ate and tied it across her forehead, figuring her jacket and vest would be enough to cover the seal. A sly smirk graced her features at the feel of the fabric sliding snugly into place, something she'd been missing for a while. It was good to have it back in its natural place.  
  
She slipped into the jacket and bent over to put on the chuunin vest before a pang of guilt grabbed her at the navel. The vest wasn't rightfully hers and it shouldn't matter what body she was in. Without another thought, the green vest was chucked violently back into the closet and the door slammed shut. Luckily, she had enough time to calm her frustration by the time she reached the hot springs. Quickly, she pulled the facemask over her loose hair and ran out the door. She reflexively swung her foot out to kick it closed as she zipped up her jacket to protect her from the cold.  
  
***  
  
She was only a couple of minutes late, having taken the 'scenic route' to the springs, and hadn't expected Kakashi to be there waiting.  
  
"Ohayo, Shiya-chan!" He greeted the girl. "You're late." She just shrugged, failing to notice the look she was getting from the Uchiha heir. He saw the jacket and, even in the failing darkness, could tell it was similar to, if not exactly, like the one Naruto was famous for. She did notice the boy shaking the thoughts from his head and turn to the other two for the details of their mission. The blond found a rock to sit on while Kakashi and Sakura related their own opinions of the numerous frustratingly boring and pointless missions Tsunade had forced upon the two. Kakashi, of course, was a lot less enthusiastic about his disapproval, and his words hardly even sounded that way.  
  
When Kakashi noticed that Sasuke had begun to pace and Kashiya was starting to skip stones off the silky surface of a steaming hot spring, he realised that they didn't really care at all and only wanted to know why they were there in the first place.  
  
"Tsunade has two reasons for this late night mission." He cleared his throat to make sure they were both paying attention to him. "The first is you two need to check out one of the filters that supplies water to the village. It seems to be a bit clogged by plants and people are starting to complain. The main reason you're here is because many people have been scared off by some odd sounds in the bushes around here, and it's ruining business for the hot springs and again villagers are complaining. Some people think it's a burglar and some think it's some vicious wild beast, but there are some that fear it's enemy ninjas from another village. Either way, the noises only seem to start after it gets dark. Do you two think you can handle this?"  
  
"Of course." They exclaimed at the same time.  
  
"This will be the easiest mission I've ever done!" Kashiya added. "No stupid pervert can take me down, I don't care if he's an enemy or not!" Kakashi nodded in agreement and turned towards the village, guiding Sakura back as well.  
  
"Good luck." He called back to them just before they were out of sight.  
  
***  
  
Once all the sewage had been cleared away from the waterways, Sasuke and Kashiya sat down beside the river and waited for the second half of the mission to reveal itself. Secretly, they both hoped it wasn't an enemy ninja, but after hours of waiting, they didn't care who or what it was, so long as the mystery was solved soon.  
  
"Nice jacket." Sasuke said after a while. He had been watching her fidget with it for some time. She didn't look at him, but left the zipper alone and nodded.  
  
"Aa, Tsunade-san bought it for me." She looked down at it and frowned. "Don't tell me it's yet another thing that makes you think I'm this Naruto kid."  
  
"Hn." The dark-haired boy replied, neither denying nor agreeing. Another tense silence fell upon them like a stifling blanket, until Kashiya couldn't take it anymore.  
  
"You know, you didn't have to come out here with me. I could have done this mission on my own."  
  
"I don't doubt it, but you can't be too careful." Sasuke stood to leave. "I'm not responsible if you're killed by dozens of ANBU from another country, though." The blond frowned, hearing Sasuke's footsteps take him away from the river.  
  
"Yamete." She said, not used to that form of the word. "Chotto matte. I didn't mean I wanted you to leave." The footsteps hesitated, and she could almost sense him turning around to study her back.  
  
"Then what did you mean?" He asked softly.  
  
"I don't know, really. I just felt the need to prove that I'm not as weak and stupid as everyone thinks I am."  
  
"You mean because you're a girl?" Kashiya winced, almost forgetting who she was again, but saw a glimmer of hope in what he said. She could unload some of her burdens onto Sasuke without him even knowing who she was.  
  
"H-hai!" She exclaimed. He returned to her side and sat down in the grass to face her. "Everyone thinks I'm just some fool who can't do anything right, and I guess I just felt the need to keep reminding people I'm strong."  
  
"So then why did you want me to come back?"  
  
"I..." She faltered, wondering why she called him back in the first place. "I guess I was enjoying your company. Even if you act like a total jerk a lot of the time, I genuinely like being around you." She shrugged and avoided his eyes, not knowing for sure if that was the reason or not, but it sounded right to her. "Plus, I get lonely sometimes, don't you?"  
  
"Sometimes." He muttered slowly.  
  
"I'm always lonely, though no one would ever know it just by looking at me. Like a couple of years ago, for example, a friend of mine," she hesitated, before realising there wasn't any need for half truths while she had a mask to hide behind, "no, my BEST friend, betrayed the village, betrayed me. I was sent out to get... her back, but inside I couldn't get over her betrayal. I felt as though she was personally spitting in my face. But I held it all in and eventually everything went back to normal again."  
  
Sasuke nodded. He hadn't planned on paying any mind to the girl's confession, but something in what she was saying made him stop and think. She seemed every bit as happy and exuberant as Naruto, but now that he was seeing her inner troubles, he noticed it was all just a mask and it reminded him of when he saw Naruto struggling with his own mask after he was rescued from Orochimaru's bed chambers. The mask had returned, and everything had gone back to normal. He wondered if even now the boy was holding in the scars of his entire life. Kashiya continued, almost as though she had been listening to his train of thought.  
  
"And then, this man attacked our village, and... he molested me in the worst way. I thought I was going to die right there on the floor. I don't think very many people actually know the truth about what happened there, but I couldn't help feeling so dirty. When I was rescued from where the man was staying, they thought they were helping me, so I kept on my happy face and looked strong for their benefit. All I really wanted to do was collapse into my best friend's arms and cry and cry until I had no more tears left to cry. People think I'm too strong to cry, and I wish I was allowed to cry, but my sorrows are too many to even start crying. If I did, there'd be no end to it, not to mention no one would care." Her eyes had started to glaze over, deep in thought, but she shook her head and smiled again.  
  
"You're an orphan?" Sasuke asked, deeply intrigued by the depth of this girl's pain. She reminded him a lot of himself. She nodded.  
  
"I live by myself in a village a little bit away from here, but it's not that bad, though there are times I wish that once in a while someone would acknowledge that I even exist." Sasuke laid his palms in the grass and tilted his head back to look at the stars through the tree branches.  
  
"And I often wish people would just leave me alone." He whispered softly. The blonde looked sharply at him, her eyes widening in surprise. Sure, she'd always known he wasn't fond of all the attention he got, but she'd always assumed he only ignored his fame as a way to flaunt his arrogance. "I'd rather have it that people had never heard of the Uchiha clan. I'm always compared to someone; I'm always pushed into some role people have laid out for me. I'll always just be the last Uchiha and not Sasuke."  
  
"Who exactly is Sasuke?" She asked, hoping he'd expand, but he shot her a sharp glare and clammed up tightly. They sat there in silence for a few minutes, and just when Kashiya thought the conversation was over, she heard a low faint whisper sound from the boy.  
  
"I don't know."  
  
~~~  
  
Okay, I didn't plan on ending there, but I guess I kind of need too, otherwise the chapter might end up being well over 3000 words long. It's actually a half decent place to stop too.  
  
Oh, and about the chapter title from last chapter... I guess it's before your time. It was actually the line from a song by the Beatles called I'll Follow the Sun... what a freaking coinky-dink.  
  
One day, you'll look to see I've gone/ But tomorrow may rain so/ I'll follow the sun  
  
Yeah, it's before my time too, but I grew up listing to it... blame my mommy. 


	23. Can't Betray His Trust

A/N at the bottom...  
  
23. Can't Betray His Trust  
  
Sasuke looked up suddenly, his eyes widened for a second, appalled that he'd let even the slightest weakness show. Eyes the colour of a cloudless sky peered back at him through thick eyelashes and he couldn't find a trace of malice or victory in her eyes, nor was there a hint of mocking laughter. She seemed genuinely interested in his secrets to satisfy her own curiosity and nothing more. There was something familiar about the level of trust he found within her eyes, but he didn't care to dwell on it for long. She had gained his trust for some reason or another, and that was something he rarely ever gave to people. Of course, he didn't acknowledge that to himself and, instead, chose to excuse his confessions as a way to unload his troubles on someone who would be gone within the next week and a half. He'd just have to keep telling himself that until she was gone.  
  
She sighed softly and nodded in understanding, drawing him from his thoughts. He dropped his eyes and picked up a blade of grass, only just noticing how close she was. It didn't bother him, but he was surprised that he hadn't seen it, knowing neither of them had moved closer or further in the time they'd been talking.  
  
"Do you ever wish...?" She trailed off; breaking eye contact to stare at the blade of grass he was still playing with. He wasn't sure exactly what she'd meant but something in him made him nod in agreement.  
  
"Hai." She looked back to his face, startled before smiling hesitantly.  
  
"I wish for a lot of things. Peace. Love. Family. I wish people would stop dying for me." She sighed.  
  
"Why do you wish that?" He wondered aloud. Kashiya shook her head her lips curving in a sombre smile.  
  
"I'm not sure exactly." A sudden brilliant flash of light startled them from their conversations, followed by the sounds of quiet stifled laughter in the bushes where the light came from. Within seconds, the blond girl had her fingers wrapped around a piece of the culprit's clothing and hoisted the small creature out into the open, kicking and screaming.  
  
"Konohamaru?!" She exclaimed as the moonlight lit up the younger boy's face. He looked up at her and smirked.  
  
"I see my reputation is large, even to visiting shinobi!" He cheered proudly, still struggling with her hold on his scarf. He was also trying vainly to hide away the Polaroid camera he'd used to take a snapshot of the two.  
  
"BAKA!" She yelled at him, smacking him on the top of the head. "What are you doing, and WHAT IS THE PICTURE FOR?!" She pointed at the picture sticking out of the camera, slowly forming an image in the pale light.  
  
"I'm using this to blackmail my Nii-chan's rival!" He grinned proudly and pointed at Sasuke. She looked at her dark-haired team mate and nearly sweatdropped at the smirk displayed across his features.  
  
"Gimme that, you little baka." She grabbed for the Polaroid picture and let the boy go. "Keep it, I'm sure there'll be other chances for me to get you, ENEMY!" He yelled at Sasuke and was about to run off before Kashiya grabbed his scarf again.  
  
"Matte. Do you know anything about the noises around this area? People have been complaining about murderers, but you wouldn't know anything abut that would you?" Konohamaru's eyes widened at this and he gasped.  
  
"Mu-murderers?!" He squeaked, his knees trembling. "Chikuso..." He muttered under his breath and ran. The blonde watched the boy run off in confusion.  
  
"So he wasn't the noise maker?" She wondered, looking back to Sasuke. He rolled his eyes and stood up.  
  
"Of course not. Didn't you see the look of fear on his face when you mentioned it?" She was about to reply snidely when a rustling in the bushes caught their attention. Kashiya stuffed the photo in her jacket pocket and tensed in anticipation. They were right beside some of the houses and immediately the lights went out and the other background noises of radios and such was immediately cut off. In the distance they heard muffled cries alerting others the murderer was back.  
  
"You go through the trees and I'll corner him by the pools." Sasuke ordered, and if it hadn't been a serious situation, Kashiya would have been angry with him. Instead she nodded and jumped into the cover of the forest branches. They both moved closer, noiselessly and came up behind the murderer, when Sasuke stopped abruptly. He straightened up and snorted loudly, keeping his eyes on the bushes.  
  
"Sasuke, you bastard, shhh!" The blonde hissed from above. He looked up and shook his head. In the darkness she could see a faint red glow from the Sharingan wheel in his eyes. "It's no murderer, baka." He smirked, having seen through the foliage what was lurking near the houses. "It's a family of raccoons going through the trash."  
  
Not believing him entirely, Kashiya scrambled closer to find half a dozen trash cans over turned with numerous fuzzy body parts sticking out from tails to paws and heads. She scowled at the boy's knack for being right, and jumped back to the ground in a huff. So the so-called murderer that was terrorising the hot springs area was nothing more than a few rodents. She grumbled under her breath at the outrage of such a pointless mission.  
  
Stuffing her hands in her pockets, she prepared to go home when her hand wrapped around something she'd stuffed in there earlier. The Polaroid of her and Sasuke. She pulled it out and took a look at it. In some weird way they both looked... comfortable. Smiling softly to herself she flashed it to Sasuke who frowned, not impressed in the least and gave her a look that said 'So?'.  
  
"Do you want this or can I keep it?"  
  
"Do what ever you'd like with it. I don't care." He'd adopted his air of aloofness again. Kashiya bit her tongue to keep from lashing out at the boy.  
  
"So then you wouldn't mind me making copies of this and showing the whole village?" A shrug was her reply.  
  
"I don't care."  
  
"And I thought maybe we were getting somewhere."  
  
"Is that all you care about?" He asked incredulously. She shook her loose hair in frustration.  
  
"I thought maybe we were becoming friends, but then you put up your stupid walls again." There was an uncomfortable silence before Sasuke sighed.  
  
"I suppose we were."  
  
"And what happened? Why do you always shut me out like this?" The dark- haired boy's head shot up at this and she laughed nervously.  
  
"What are you talking about?" He asked, suspiciously.  
  
"Ano..." She stalled, trying to come up with an excuse for her little slip up. "You've been like this to me ever since I came here. I'm getting tired of it." She would have cheered at her quick thinking if it wouldn't give her away.  
  
"Hn." He shrugged again and shoved his hands into his pockets. "If I take you out for dinner will you stop annoying me?" He asked. "It's not a date or anything though, you're not my type." He repeated the words again. She nodded, not really focusing on anything except the idea of free ramen. She didn't even pay any mind to the last words he said before they started walking back to the village.  
  
"My type isn't here."  
  
***  
  
When they got into the heart of the village, Kashiya immediately began dragging Sasuke to the Ichiraku Ramen bar. It was a purely instinctive thing, but Sasuke didn't protest too loudly. They had just settled in to their stools, and Kashiya had just snapped her chopsticks apart when a cold shiver ran down her spine and she realised something was terribly wrong. While the meal was perfect and everything, Kashiya wasn't.  
  
In order to eat she'd have to remove her face mask. She watched Sasuke from the corner of her eye and realised he had noticed that little fact as well. The whole situation was vaguely familiar to her, until she remembered coercing Sakura and Sasuke into a situation similar to this one when they were a lot younger, only that time, the mask-wearer was Kakashi. She shifted her gaze to the background of the little ramen bar and noticed that Sakura and Ino were in the corner watching the two of them intently, and smirked seeing her opening. She quickly moved her chair closer to Sasuke's and wrapped her arms around one of his, whispering her thanks into his ear. Frowning, he pushed her away, but the damage had been done. In an instant the two girls had bombarded them cooing over 'their' Sasuke, giving Kashiya enough time to push down her mask and slurp up her miso ramen as fast as she could. When Sasuke finally had the chance to look past the two girls Kashiya had finished her bowl and was grinning at him.  
  
"Sorry to interrupt you three, but I have to go home now." She snickered at the disappointment on the boy's face. "Thanks for the ramen, Sasuke-kun."  
  
"Don't think MY Sasuke will be buying you ramen again, Kashiya!" Sakura called after the boy-turned-girl. "You might be my temporary team mate, but I will fight you for him." Kashiya nodded. Sakura was so passionate about her undying affection for Sasuke. She wondered briefly how she could hold out hope for so long, but then remembered she still had a crush on the pink- haired girl. Funnily enough, she turned him down as many times as Sasuke turned her down, and still they kept trying. She'd have to make a mental note to ask her out again when she returned to her normal body.  
  
Sasuke watched the look of complete adoration cross her face and felt a creeping sense of déjà vu. He seemed to recall the look on Naruto's face daily as he followed the girl around like a puppy and all he previous feelings of suspicion came back to him, challenging the facts about the new girl. 'No.' He told himself. 'I'm not going to let my inability to trust cloud my judgement. Naruto has no reason to play a prank like this for so long.' He shook the thought from his head and nodded to the girl as she left.  
  
Making her way out of the bar quickly, not noticing the look on Sasuke's face, she smiled in satisfaction, knowing it would all be over in a week or so and there would be so much she'd be thankful to have back.  
  
***  
  
The light poured into the room slowly, spreading from the window to the floor and creeping its way towards the bed on the other side of the room, where the blond girl lay fast asleep. Her hair was tossed every which way in a tangled mess and her breathing was slightly shallow as her hand was covering up half of her face. As the warm light made its way over her toes, she shivered in delight at the warmth. Her eyes opened a crack and she smiled serenely. Every morning should be like this. She was still in the place between slumber and consciousness and her memory hadn't caught up with her yet. The expression of bliss disappeared the moment she caught up with herself. She lifted herself warily from her bed and dragged herself groggily to the mirror to give herself a quick once over before she headed out of her room for breakfast.  
  
"Ohayo." She mumbled to her reflection. The girl in the mirror glared viciously at her before the expression vanished in a deep sigh. "One more day closer." She muttered to herself, pulling on her orange pants to do some training later on in the day. It didn't matter that she jeep up her appearance as she was just staying at home for the day and the only visitors she had already knew about her temporary 'disability'. She sighed, opting to leave her face mask on the dresser for the time being and made her way to the kitchen for something to eat. Contrary to popular belief, she did have more than ramen in her cupboards, and although she loved the stuff, eating it so early in the morning didn't entirely appeal to her stomach.  
  
She pulled out a bowl and a box of cereal, deftly preparing the food. She opened the fridge with her foot and pulled out a FRESH carton of milk and, kicking the door shut again, made her way to the table milk in one hand and bowl in the other. It was routine and didn't require much thought.  
  
Halfway through her second bowl, there was a knock at her door. She frowned and considered ignoring it altogether, but the person persisted until she got up and pulled it open.  
  
"Ohayo, Tsunade." She grumbled, leaving the door open for the Hokage to walk through and returning to her half-eaten cereal. The older blonde took the hint and stepped inside. It had been a couple of days since the mission, and Tsunade had felt slightly foolish about something that wasn't as big of a problem as the villagers had made her think. She shut the door behind her, ignoring Kashiya's impatiently tapping foot.  
  
"What are you doing here?" She asked, getting straight to the point. Offering a shrug as a response, Tsunade made herself at home, sitting beside the young girl's half eaten, now-soggy cereal.  
  
"It would make the villagers think I was cold if I didn't visit my niece, ne?" She grinned. Kashiya rolled her eyes and sat down at the table too, shoving the bowl out of her way in disgust. There was no point in finishing it now.  
  
"Any day now I should be turning back, ne?" She muttered. "So you don't need to visit me anymore." The Hokage nodded in agreement.  
  
"But for now I'd still like to appear to have a heart for a relation I don't have. So how has the village taken to Kashiya?"  
  
"Okay, I suppose. Sakura-chan is pretty jealous I think, and Sasuke's opened up to me more than he ever did while I was a boy. I think he might actually trust me to some extent." The smile on her face was surprising. Tsunade had never seen such an intense look of pride cross Naruto's face in all the years she'd known him.  
  
"Isn't that something you've wanted? Or were you only out to make fun of him by seducing him?" The young blonde shook her head.  
  
"Maybe at first, but I don't think I can betray the trust he's put in me right now." She picked up the orange juice and took a small sip from it. "Plus, he's very suspicious of me, and if he finds out who I really am he might think his trust was misplaced. If I can just make it to the end of this stupid seal, then Sasuke will never know and I'll be able to build up that trust again." The woman nodded, thoughtfully. "It's hard to remember I've got a new start, especially knowing that within days it'll just disappear."  
  
"So you're used to your old life, but not willing to give this up?"  
  
"Don't get me wrong, Tsunade-baba, I never want to be a girl again as long as I live, but Kashiya has so much freedom in the village."  
  
"Have I ever told you about Jiraiya when he was your age and younger?" Kashiya's blue eyes lit up, and she shook her head negative. "He was very much like you in everything he did, though he may take offence to my telling you that." She chuckled, remembering the fun they all had. "In fact, me, Jiraiya and Orochimaru are just about every way like your team seven is. Jiraiya and you, me and Sakura, and Sasuke and Orochimaru."  
  
"Sasuke will never be like Orochimaru." Kashiya bit out defensively. The woman merely smiled and nodded, not taking any offence to the remark.  
  
"No, of course not. But you're thinking of the Orochimaru you killed." The young blonde girl frowned, but kept silent. "I meant the younger version of ourselves. Jiraiya and Orochimaru were the best of friends, and the worst of enemies. Every time they were even in the same room they would butt heads, either physically or verbally, much like you and Sasuke did. Orochimaru was the genius prodigy, and Jiraiya was nothing but the baka clown of the academy, sure to amount to nothing in the future." Tsunade smirked hearing Kashiya mutter under her breath something about the 'pervert-sennin and his books'.  
  
"Jiraiya would play a prank by summoning toads in the middle of class and Orochimaru would call him names like "Dead-last" or "weak-minded". There was even a little triangle between the three of us. Jiraiya professed his love for me every other minute, while I only had eyes for Orochimaru. I never even noticed him until Orochimaru started to show signs of darkness." Kashiya's eyebrows shot to her hairline in amazement. She never noticed how close their lives truly were to the Legendary Three's. This thought made her stop and consider the outcome of Team Seven's little love triangle.  
  
"And what happened between you and Jiraiya?" She asked, knowing the idea of the two adults doing anything romantic should make him sick, but curious to her own love life's fate.  
  
"Nothing actually." She smiled sadly.  
  
"NANI YO?!"  
  
"Yep. By the time I saw anything even remotely romantic about Jiraiya he was swept away by someone else." The grin returned to the young girl's face.  
  
"So he found another girl? Then why is he alone now?"  
  
"No, and I'm getting to that. Not a girl, he found solace in the arms of the one person he hated most." She continued on, ignoring the look of horror on the orphan's face. "Orochimaru and Jiraiya had so much tension between them that it eventually exploded right in their faces. One night Jiraiya went over to Orochimaru's, extremely pissed off about something the prodigy had beaten him in again or something, and they just went at it right there."  
  
"WOAH!!! Too much information!!" The young girl waved her hands in front of her face, wildly, a look of utter disgust twisting her mouth into a frown. "I'm not homophobic or anything, but there is no way me and Sasuke-"  
  
"Oh, no of course not." She smirked, and Kashiya eyed her warily, not entirely sure the woman wasn't being sarcastic. "They were lovers for a very long time until Orochimaru turned his back on the village and betrayed everyone, including Jiraiya. Sasuke did the same thing a few years ago, just when I came into office here, right?" She continued at the slight nod. "Jiraiya was torn up feeling Orochimaru's betrayal worse than anyone else." Kashiya bent her head knowing all too well what it felt like to be betrayed like that.  
  
"Like you, Jiraiya tried to go after him, but the darkness was too great. Jiraiya beats himself up everyday for his failure, but Orochimaru had been corrupt for a long time, even while they were sleeping together. You're lucky you were able to bring Sasuke back from that edge. How did you feel about that?"  
  
"I didn't feel like a scorned lover if that's what you're thinking." She snorted.  
  
"Jiraiya wasn't betrayed in that sense; it had nothing to do with romantic love. He felt that their friendship had been false." Kashiya paused to think about it for a moment and Tsunade rose from her seat at the table.  
  
"I hate to be leaving so soon, but I am the Hokage and I do have things to do. I really enjoyed talking to you, Naruto." She smiled softly, surprising the young girl by calling her by her real name. "You reminded me of my little brother; it was nice not to miss him for a few minutes." She turned to the door and her eye caught on a small photo that had been clumsily framed on the girl's wall.  
  
"You two look... comfortable together." She commented. "You have a good thing going with him, even if it doesn't go as far as Jiraiya and Orochimaru's relationship went."  
  
"Hai, he's my best friend." She turned back to study the girl for a moment before nodding stiffly.  
  
"You should put on your face mask before Iruka comes over, again." A smirk made its way across her features as she remembered all the times someone had told her about Iruka's daily poundings.  
  
"Hai, hai." Came the reply. She turned and left quickly.  
  
It hadn't been more than two minutes since the woman had left when another knock came from the door. Kashiya was still sitting at the table, staring at her bowl absentmindedly, delaying the need to fetch her facemask. Pushing the seat back, noisily, she went to the door muttering loudly enough for Tsunade to hear her.  
  
"What do you want, Tsunade-baba? I was just about to get my facemask, you're worse than Iruka-sen..." Her voice trailed off when she opened the door and found that the person at her door was definitely not who she'd been expecting. She should have known he'd be there. She should have known that today was not only the day she didn't answer the door without her face mask, but wearing 'Naruto's' orange pants with the jacket lazily wrapped around her waist, too. But the look on Sasuke's face told her that he'd finally figured everything out and she was in big trouble.  
  
"Chikuso." She whispered to herself.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah, I know I'm a horrible person for taking so damn long to post, I'm sorry. Well, at least this is the longest chapter to date! And yes, Sasuke has no more doubts about Naruto's identity, so no more running around. I was getting tired of the whole thing anyways... plus if I'd kept it going any longer it would definitely slip into the cliché. Course, Naruto still has a couple of days left in the femme body.  
  
To Most Feared Assassin: Wow... you have no idea how flattered I am that you drew something for this part of the story!! (which reminds me I should too) I'd love to see it if you ever get around to scanning it.  
  
To ghostninja85: I'm inclined to agree with you. Don't worry, there's not too much longer with Kashiya and then she's gone forever. I don't much like this plot line either, but it's crucial to the next part of the story.  
  
Sakura basher's get ready. 


	24. Why Couldn't He Trust ME?

Chapter 24: Why Couldn't He Trust *Me*?  
  
Kashiya paused in the doorway, her mind moving ten times faster than her body, which adamantly refused to budge an inch. Sasuke, too, seemed to be in some sort of shock, but he recovered quicker and a scowl came over his face, darkening his features.  
  
"NARUTO!" He growled, curling his lip in disgust. Whether it was the sound of his voice or her actual name being said, she never knew, but suddenly she sprang to life and slammed the door shut before the genin in front of her could do anything about it.  
  
"I t-told you, Sasuke!!" She called shakily through the door. "I'm not Naruto!"  
  
"I should have kept with my suspicions from the start." He muttered to himself, glaring at the door.  
  
"Iie!! I'm not just some jutsu!" She continued, but he'd stopped listening to her now.  
  
"Open the door or I'll break it down!!" he yelled, turning the knob and throwing his weight against it. Kashiya yelped, startled and heaved her own weight against it to keep him out. When the door was shut again, she rushed to bolt the locks, but her nimble fingers were shaking to hard to do anything useful.  
  
"No, go to hell!!"  
  
"Dobe, open up!!"  
  
"Stop calling me that TEME!!"  
  
"There's more proof!" She smacked herself in the forehead. Even after a month in that body, it was still engrained inside of her to retort to Sasuke's favourite nickname for her. Sasuke once again threw his weight on the door and it flung open. The blond had been too busy worrying about her response to his 'dobe' remark and was thrown off balance. Stumbling backwards, Kashiya took off running towards her bedroom, but the dark- haired ninja tackled her from behind and they began to fight.  
  
Sasuke smirked, knowing he now had an advantage knowing who the girl truly was. He no longer had to worry about hurting her; in fact, he really wanted to hurt her now. No one deceived an Uchiha and got away with it. They rolled around on the floor for a few minutes, alternately punching and kicking; Kashiya's attempts were rabid, flailing her arms in every direction, panic setting in early. Finally, the rolling ball of arms and legs came to a stop when Sasuke slammed her shoulders to the floor. They both paused for a second, chests panting in exertion, before Sasuke began glaring down at the blonde again.  
  
"I want to know why you did this to me." He demanded, digging his nails into the girl's shoulder, painfully, to get it across that he was serious. She winced, but didn't answer. "Why did you try and lead me on like that, you sick bastard. Naruto, change back." Again the girl made no move to answer him and he got even angrier. "Why wont you change back now? Why didn't you earlier!? It's not going to work on me anymore, I can see right through it, dobe!"  
  
"I can't." She muttered beneath him.  
  
"Bull shit!!" He replied, earning himself a glare.  
  
"Why the hell would I stay like this for so long? I'm sealed in this damned jutsu. If I could have turned back, I would have a very long time ago." She pushed Sasuke's body off of herself and sat up, curling her legs beneath her. "Not everything is about you. I was sealed like this on my birthday. Ebisu did it. It wasn't like I expected you to fall in love with me seriously." Sasuke scoffed.  
  
"I'm NOT in love with you, dobe." He snarled back. "Or did you not hear me every time I told you that... Kashiya is not my type." He was still angry. He still didn't believe him. "You're a stupid little child who has nothing better to do than make up stories and pranks to ruin the lives of others. How could you do this! I trusted you!"  
  
"How come you couldn't trust me when I was a guy?" Kashiya frowned. "Don't think I forgot about that little talk in the forest. How do you think I feel knowing you could talk to some new girl like you'd known her your entire life, but to someone you told was your closest friend, you can't say more than two words without either insulting me or challenging me."  
  
Apparently, Sasuke could figure out when he was losing a battle and he stood up. Throwing a glare over his shoulder, he turned to leave.  
  
"You try and play the victim here but it won't work, Naruto. Maybe they will on Iruka and Kakashi and maybe even on Tsunade-sama, but not on me. We're on the same level, and your lies will never work on me." He continued out the open door, making sure to slam it shut. With a big sigh, Kashiya fell backwards onto the floor, hitting her head on the floorboards repeatedly.  
  
"Maybe if you didn't have your head so far up your ass, you'd see that I wasn't lying." She muttered to herself. "You're not the only victim in this village." She cursed under her breath before lifting herself up from the floor and tearing out the door, regardless of her facemask. Things were getting too complicated and she wanted answers.  
  
***  
  
"Open up!" She pounded on the door angrily. She didn't care who she was annoying, she didn't care who recognised her (it didn't matter now that Sasuke had figured her out); all she wanted was answers. The door opened and she received a whack to the head.  
  
"First of all, where the hell is your mask," Iruka hissed as quietly as he could muster, dragging Kashiya inside. "Do you know how many people were looking outside to see what all the racket was?"  
  
"I don't care about the stupid fucking mask!!" She screamed, stopping him in his rant. "Who cares if a few more people figure out who I am...? Sasuke already knows. He saw me as I am." She gestured to her attire with her hands. She could tell that an "I told you so" was right on the tip of Iruka's tongue, but she shot him a particularly nasty glare which shut him up. He sighed and sat down while Kashiya entertained herself, pacing.  
  
"I hate Ebisu." She muttered. "I hate Konohamaru."  
  
"Doushite?"  
  
"If it weren't for them I wouldn't be stuck like this."  
  
"What are you going to do now?"  
  
"I don't know. That's why I came here; to you. I never wanted all this trouble, just a little recognition on my birthday; I didn't need all of these problems!"  
  
"What am I going to do, Iruka-nii?" She asked softly, a pained look coming across her delicate features. The older man winced, not used to the look and shook his head slowly.  
  
"There's really nothing we can do." Stopping in her tracks, she turned on him, her eyes narrowed to angry slits.  
  
"That's not true!!" she yelled, pointing a finger at him. "You can turn me back! You have to!! DO IT!!! If you can't then there must be someone else who can!!" She was beginning to become hysterical. "Tsunade-baba will!! She's the goddamned Hokage after all."  
  
"It's not that easy, Naruto-kun. A seal as powerful as that one isn't the easiest thing to remove."  
  
"And yet it was oh-so easy to put on me."  
  
"What's so bad about this? Sure, Sasuke-kun now knows about you, but that can't be as bad as you're making it out to be." The girl slumped to the ground, her eyes trailing to the open window where a slight breeze floated carelessly throughout the room. Her body slumped over in defeat.  
  
"It is, Iruka-nii. First, I tried to seduce him with the jutsu." Ignoring the 'that was smart!' from Iruka, she continued. "And when that didn't work, I said some things that got him to... I don't know, open up to Kashiya. He trusted her. And now he's beyond pissed off at me because I betrayed that trust somehow." A silent, solitary sob wracked her body. "Why couldn't he have trusted me like that?" She cried softly. "I've always looked up to him, and the one time he actually has confidence in me is when I'm pretending to be something I'm not. Why'd he have to trust her and not me?"  
  
Iruka winced, furrowing his brows, and bent down to wrap his arms around the lonely fox.  
  
"Gomen ne, Naruto-kun." He whispered, cursing himself for not having anything else to offer.  
  
"I wish none of this had ever happened. At least then I could have believed what Sasuke told me once... that I was truly his best friend." She sighed and straightened up in Iruka's embrace. "I've only got a few more days left, I can't let this moment ruin my life." Already, Kashiya was beginning to rebuild her walls and patch up the cracks in her mask. She couldn't afford breakdowns like these, and she vowed that Iruka would be the last person to see her this weak.  
  
***  
  
Unfortunately, she didn't realise that just beyond the open window, someone had been listening to the entire conversation. After leaving Naruto's apartment, Sasuke had followed her straight to Iruka's and heard the entire thing. He was perched just above the window sill, waiting to see Naruto's reaction to their argument.  
  
"Stupid idiot." He muttered to himself, though the words lacked the conviction to make them believable. Even a cold hearted bastard like himself was slightly moved by what he heard in the room.  
  
To find that he'd gotten through Naruto's ever present mask, deep enough to hurt him this much was quite surprising though. He never thought he'd see the day when the defences were down so far. Heaving a great sigh, he snuck a quick peak at the pair in the room before jumping onto the roof of the neighbouring apartment. Like Naruto, his face hardened once more, deciding against letting what he had heard affect his decision.  
  
He wasn't going to let Naruto play him this way. He had every right to be angry with the blond, even though he was having a tough time convincing himself of that.  
  
"If he wanted to be trusted, he should have trusted me first." He spat to no one in particular, trying to ignore the stinging fact that his words were coming from his bruised pride and meant nothing in the end.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Stupid piece of crap chapter (can't you tell that I just totally adore it?)... This was originally supposed to end with Sasuke leaving Naruto's apartment... but that would have made it SUPER short... as it is, it's still too short for my liking (even though it's almost the entirety of 25 with it). I'm really sorry for making you all wait another two weeks... but it's march break now so I'll be working on this story as much as humanly possible... along with cleaning the house, and making my costume for the upcoming anime convention. *grins* It's a wonder I even have time for school with my hectic schedule...  
  
***I'd really like to thank Annachan for that wonderful review... I was actually left speechless. Thank you for telling me how the story made you feel. I thrive on long reviews like that. I think it's actually my fave review of all time. You have no idea how much I blushed while reading it. I think I had to read it three times before it sunk in.  
  
***To Quicksilver: Actually Tsunade hasn't even been thought about in the anime yet... but in the manga she's already there. There are two instances where the analogy of Team seven comes up. One is after that fight between Sasuke and Naruto... which Kakashi intervened (damn). Jiraiya asks what the problem was between the two and Kakashi says it was like Jiraiya and Orochimaru when they were that age. So... if the rivalry was the same... and this is to be a SasuNaru story, then one would assume that the romance would be the same, ne? The second bit is from the actual story of the Gallant Jiraiya. It's an actual Japanese legend. Jiraiya is this wonderful ninja married to Tsunade and his apprentice (forget the name... it'll come to me) runs off after the dark arts or something and changes his name to Orochimaru.  
  
If anyone wants me to find the link for the story then I'd be more than happy. It's not too long, and it's really good if you are like me and want to know all the historical facts. (Don't even start me on Okita Souji from Peacemaker Kurogane/ Kenshin).  
  
If anyone asks for it I'll put it in the beginning of the next chapter (which will be out in a couple of days so you won't have to wait too long). 


	25. Fangs and Claws

The linkie for the story about the Gallant Jiraiya is:  
  
  
  
Because so many people complained that the last chapter was too short (It was 1700+ words!!!... che, you people are spoiled) I've decided to post this chapter... it's a good 2500+ words, that should satisfy enough people (not to mention make up for only two posts in one month). Thanks for reviewing so soon. I was amazed. Aki Natsu reviewed within an hour of me posting... that was freaky. *grins*  
  
Chapter 25: Fangs and Claws  
  
For more than two days, Kashiya and Sasuke avoided each other like the plague. The tension between the two had been so great that Kakashi allowed them to work separately. Through a little coaxing, on the silver-haired jounin's part, managed to get the whole story out of Iruka. At first he was reluctant to grant the two their space, but after a couple of failed attempts at pushing them together, he realised it was easier and safer to let them sort through their problems in their own time.  
  
Kashiya did separate missions and worked with Sakura alternately, although it was painfully obvious that she was constantly aware of every move Sasuke made and vice versa. The animosity became so over bearing that Kakashi began assigning the two different missions so they had excuse enough to avoid each other, but some how Kashiya found a way to be consistently snippy with the dark-haired boy. He didn't know how long he could last through the stress they were putting on him, but something told him he wouldn't have to wait too much longer.  
  
One day, Kashiya was washing her hands of the horrid smelling stickiness of the plant they'd been hired to collect, when Sasuke accidentally brushed past her. She (being the infinitely graceful creature that she was) tumbled into the cold November water, coughing and sputtering when she resurfaced.  
  
"You stupid asshole!" She snarled in her high-pitched voice. He stopped and turned down to her, a cold glare etched on his face.  
  
"It's not my fault you're such a clumsy little girl that you can't even stand beside a river without falling in." He snapped back. They continued glaring daggers at each other before a light went of in the blonde's head. Pulling herself out of the river, she grabbed Sasuke roughly by the upper arm and dragged him away from Sakura and Kakashi, who were watching for the explosion they'd been waiting for the past couple days.  
  
"Let go of me, dobe!" Sasuke hissed under his breath, resembling a snake in more than just the glare on his face. She ignored him and continued dragging him away until she was sure they could talk in semi privacy. Sasuke found himself dragged into a dim alleyway, the light from the sunset not reaching the narrow walls, and thrown harshly against the cold stone.  
  
"Now, you listen to me, Uchiha," she whispered sharply. "We need to talk." Sasuke turned his head in an effort to ignore the girl, but she just pressed him closer to the wall, her strength impressing him. Slightly. "You need to get over yourself, asshole. Stop with this whole vengeance thing. How are you going to deal with every little problem? Are you going to hold a grudge every time you are wronged in some way? It's going to ruin you."  
  
"I have nothing to say to you, Naruto-kun." He muttered softly, trying to leave. She remained steadfast, holding her ground.  
  
"Then why are you avoiding me like this? What are you so afraid of?" Sasuke looked her in the eyes and scoffed dramatically.  
  
"Me? There's nothing I'm afraid of."  
  
"That's not what you told Kashiya." She smirked, triumphantly. "Were you afraid that now someone you actually are close to knows something about who you are? Is that it?" when she didn't get a reply, she kept on. "Why won't you let anyone in the village get closer to you. Do you realise how many years Sakura has been pining over you? Or did you forget your second goal of continuing the Uchiha line? What about me? You told me I was your best friend. You're supposed to trust me, Sasuke. Not some girl from out of town." She frowned, biting her lip.  
  
"What ever you thought you saw in me that day was a lie, Naruto-kun." Sasuke snapped quietly, pushing the girl away from him.  
  
"Within every lie there's truth. And your lie is a truth." She retorted to his back, watching his back stiffen. She didn't really understand what she said, but it had made sense before it left her tongue. "Stop shutting me out of your life, Sasuke."  
  
With a startled gasp, Kashiya collapsed, her arms locking tightly around her stomach in pain. She winced as her head landed roughly on the ground, leaving scratches on her cheek. A strangled moan escaped her lips, forcing Sasuke to turn around. He furrowed his brows, trying to ignore her cries of pain, believing them to be faked and forced, but she continued to cry out and he stepped back in horror seeing the girl blinking back tears.  
  
"Naruto! Naruto!" He yelled, running to the girl's side. In an effort to silence her screams, Kashiya bit down hard on her own tongue, relishing the coppery taste of blood, and thankful that the other pain was able to distract her from the pain in her stomach. She could have sworn someone was trying to split her apart from the navel.  
  
Gathering the writhing girl into his arms, Sasuke cradled her to his chest, forcing himself to be calm.  
  
"What's going on?" He asked, trying vainly to hide the panic in his voice. He couldn't remember ever seeing Naruto in so much pain before and it scared him a little.  
  
"I-I don't know." She gritted out, coughing out some of the blood that was pooling in her mouth, too distracted to be disgusted by the fact that it had been stopped by her facemask. "Itai... tsurai... Onegai, Sasuke-kun... yamero. Make it stop!!" She sobbed into his shirt and he knew she had to be in a lot of pain to admit that much.  
  
"What can I do?"  
  
"Tsu-baba... Iruka-nii... Kakashi-sensei... they all know..." She winced, as another wave of pain washed over her. She dug her fingernails into Sasuke's shoulder, drawing blood instantly and leaned in to whisper into his ear. "Tsunade is a healer. Closer." It was becoming more than even she could handle. Sasuke nodded curtly and, picking her up, ran as fast as he could towards the Hokage office. His eyes flashed red and memories of Lee's Taijutsu kicked in, making him even quicker.  
  
***  
  
It only took him a couple of minutes to reach the meeting room where Tsunade was, but Kashiya had passed out long before, unable to stand the pain any longer. He kicked the door open angrily, surprising the occupants. Tsunade had been in a very serious meeting with Izumo and Kotetsu, both of whom were arguing over some of the legalities of a possible alliance with Sand now that Orochimaru had been disposed of. Immediately, the two young men stood up and demanded that Sasuke show the Hokage some respect and not barge in that way, but Tsunade stopped them with a wave of her hand.  
  
"Tsunade-sama! Kashiya is in pain." Sasuke exclaimed, taking another step into the room. The woman stood up and peered around her guardians. Upon recognising the girl she ushered the two men out the door, ignoring their adamant protests.  
  
"Put her down in the middle of the floor and tell me EXACTLY what happened." She demanded, her tone leaving no room for argument.  
  
"We were talking and all of a sudden she collapsed to the ground cradling her stomach." He frowned at being pushed to the side while the Hokage went about examining Kashiya's body. "She told me to take her straight to you first because you knew about who she really was." Slowly, Tsunade lifted her head and turned her gaze to the dark-haired boy.  
  
"So then you know about what happened." She stated. He nodded and she went back to her inspection. Tearing up the middle the young girl's shirt and facemask, Tsunade frowned, noticing the seal around the girl's navel was glowing an angry red. The first thing she had to do was numb the pain enough for the girl to reawaken. Pulling a small jar of slave from her pocket, she coated her hands and let her hands rest gently on the bare stomach in front of her. The seal's glow died down a little bit and slowly her sky-blue eyes opened again. She looked at Sasuke for a moment (the boy was hovering over the two females anxiously) curious as to why the boy's face was beet red.  
  
"Naruto, daijoubu ka?" Tsunade whispered softly. Kashiya turned her gaze to the healer above her and noticed her slight lack of upper body clothing.  
  
"Aa, daijoubu."  
  
"Where does it hurt?" Her face was blank for a moment, the salve throwing off her nerves for a moment before she winced.  
  
"My head, my stomach and my chest."  
  
"Do you know what's going on?" She shook her head. "The seal Ebisu put on you is starting to wear off, and now that it's weakened the rest of them, the Kyuubi is trying to force its way out of you. It's because you are weaker now; caught between forms." She closed her eyes, praying that Naruto would have the strength to hold back the fox until she was returned to a he.  
  
"Sasuke." The Hokage looked up. "Please go get Kakashi-sensei for me." He nodded before frowning in frustration. Kashiya had a death grip on his arm.  
  
"Onegai, let me stay." He whispered softly, not sure if anyone else heard his request. Tsunade smiled serenely, remembering her little chat with Kashiya about her two team mate's own failed romance. Seeing the girl gripping Sasuke like a lifeline was refreshing and gave her some semblance of hope for their future. She nodded in agreement.  
  
"Kotetsu!" She called. The young man entered the meeting room, a scowl on his face.  
  
"Nan desu ka?" He asked, seemingly still upset over being kicked out of the room.  
  
"Please get me Kakashi, Iruka and Jiraiya-san. It's an emergency."  
  
Nodding curtly and muttering 'what am I, your slave?' under his breath, he left the room again. In their own little world, Kashiya pulled Sasuke closer to her, biting back a whimper of pain that threatened to escape her bloodstained lips. "I'm not going to let that stupid old hag be right." Sasuke looked down, confused, but let her continue. "Do you remember the hag that spilled my secret?" She asked. He nodded solemnly. "She told me, when I came back to the hut, that she didn't think that my will and the seal would be enough to keep the Kitsune caged for long. I won't let her be right about me."  
  
***  
  
Once the men had been assembled in the meeting room, watching Naruto writhing in pain on the floor, Tsunade informed them of what was going on. Iruka was terrified for his former student, Jiraiya was shocked into silence and Kakashi's face was lit with the grimness of reality. Of all of them, Kakashi was the most jaded. Before they could do anything, the numbness of the painkiller began wearing off, and the room was filled with the young blonde's feminine screams. It was a miracle that she was holding back her tears so well.  
  
"UWAAH!!! ONEGAI!!! Make it stop!!! ITAI!! Please... please... make it stop..." Tsunade bent down next to the girl and took a hold of her other hand, keeping out of the way of the fierce hold she had on Sasuke. The dark- haired genin had hardened his resolve, but even so looked a bit scared by it all.  
  
"Naruto, stay strong." The female Hokage whispered. "Fight the demon. I told you that when you learned Rasengan I would recognise you as the next Hokage. Anyone else would have given up, but you didn't. Don't start giving up now."  
  
"I want to give up so much, but I can't let the Kitsune kill everyone again." She whimpered, biting into Sasuke's shoulder suddenly as another wave of pain shook her body. The boy's eyes shot open, but he didn't protest, knowing how tired and painful her tongue must have been already. He didn't really mind the blood that was starting to trickle down his back, in fact, he was quite used to it by now from training. "Maybe if I'm martyred Sakura would like me more." She muttered into Sasuke's flesh. He growled and smacked her on the back of the head.  
  
"You're being an idiot."  
  
A clearing of the throat caught Tsunade's attention again. She looked up at the trio of men, ignoring for a moment the lost look in Jiraiya's eyes, knowing exactly what he was seeing.  
  
"Why were we summoned, Tsunade-sama?" Kakashi asked, quietly, trying to hide his sympathy for the blonde girl in Sasuke's arms. "You're the healer, why are we needed to be here?" She frowned sadly and shook her head.  
  
"You'll see in just a moment if I'm right about this." She exclaimed, giving the girl's hand a squeeze to offer support. The men looked anxiously at each other, confused by her elusive answer, when the seal suddenly erupted into a series of light bursts, red chakra flowing out of the girl. Her high-pitched wails were drowned out by the thundering of the building shaking with the force of the Kitsune's chakra. The blast knocked both Sasuke and Tsunade away from the blonde girl, and their presence was immediately replaced by the three men who had been keeping watch. They struggled to help contain both the Kitsune and Kashiya.  
  
Left to stare on in shock, Sasuke watched as the once weak and whimpering girl was replaced by a fearsome beast. It was his first time seeing the Kyuubi in action, but it was hard to imagine that not even half an hour earlier they had been arguing, and Kashiya was trying desperately to patch up their friendship.  
  
"Fight it!" Jiraiya cried.  
  
"I-I'm trying!!" Came the gruff reply.  
  
"Remember the village!" Tsunade offered. "Iruka, Kakashi, Jiraiya, Konohamaru, Sakura, Sasuke..." She listed off a few other names, but at the mention of Sasuke's name, he stepped up, and placed a hand on the woman's shoulder.  
  
"Dobe, fight the damn Kitsune." He growled. "How are you going to be Hokage if you can't hold back this demon?" He paused, wondering briefly if taunting the shaking mass of fury was a smart move, but kept going. "Don't forget that I still want to fight you eventually. If you give in then I'll have to take that as a forfeit. You don't want to disappoint me, now do you?" He sneered down at the girl.  
  
Kashiya looked up, her features blurred with those of the fox demon. Sasuke stepped back slightly in surprise. Glowing red eyes were narrowed in a way he never thought Naruto could manage, and her nails were sharpened into claws. The red chakra seemed to engulf her entire body. She growled low, curling her lip in a snarl and snapped her jaws at Tsunade and the others, throwing them off her back without any problems. Taking a couple of moments to get her balance in order, the Kitsune stood up and snarled to the dark- haired genin, smirking viciously. Sasuke was almost put off by her teeth, but they didn't have enough time to register in his mind when she leapt at him, fangs and claws first.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well then... I can't believe I finished that a day after I posted 24, meaning this only took me a day to type. *grins* YATTA!!!  
  
If you haven't noticed (cause I've been getting reviews asking when Naruto's going to go back) I've been calling Kashiya 'Naruto' for the last few chapters (it was a sort of foreshadowing thingy), which means that by the end of the next chapter, Naruto will be back in his wonderful body again. I'm sure everyone will be thankful for that. Heh heh... 


	26. An Awful Shade of Red

Aren't you all amazed at how fast I posted the last three chapters? It just means I re-inserted myself into the story... not to mention I'm on march break and procrastinating my homework. A couple of you expressed great anxiety that Sasuke may possibly die in this chappie... heh heh... nothing doing... I think it's a little too early for that, but don't worry... there may come a time (just kidding). And yes I finally found Naruto's proper gender lying in an old waste basket and I've decided to sew it back on him like Peter Pan's shadow (the bugger put up a nasty little fight). Of course for the two paragraphs after it I kept referring to him as 'her' and 'she'. Of course you all want to get on with the story (or you have already skipped this)... so I'll shut up now.  
  
Chapter Title: 26. An Awful Shade of Red (as in... BLOOD!!)  
  
Sasuke closed his eyes, feeling the fox tackle him roughly to the ground, prepared for the inevitable sensation of torn flesh. Much to his surprise, all that he suffered was having the breath knocked out of him. He opened his eyes to look up at his attacker (who was breathing heavily on top of him) cautiously, protecting his family heirloom, and found a bundle of energy smiling down at him.  
  
Kashiya had managed to get in control of her own body before she collided with the boy, and wore a look of smug triumph. His eyes softened, recognising the mask for what it was, but decided against voicing his opinions of it.  
  
"Knew you could do it, dobe." He whispered so that only the girl above him could hear. Her eyes closed in a brief moment of pain and, with aloud pop and a puff of smoke, the girl was gone, replaced by the boy he'd known for much longer. Even his clothes were back in order. When the smoke had cleared, he glared angrily down at the dark-haired ninja, growling slightly.  
  
"Of... course." His words came out mumbled as the last of his strength left him, and he fell asleep right on top of Sasuke.  
  
"Will he be okay?" The genin looked up suddenly at Tsunade who offered him a brief nod. It was strangely quiet in the meeting room for a few moments, everyone watching the sleeping boy wrapped (subconsciously) in Sasuke's arms. With a great general sigh, the three men decided it was their time to leave, now that their job was done.  
  
"Kakashi-san, will you take Naruto-kun to the hospital for me?" Tsunade stopped the silver-haired man, her hand gently resting on his arm. His arms tightening around the blond, Sasuke panicked for a moment.  
  
"You just said he'd be fine!" He protested.  
  
"Aa, I'm not an expert on trapping souls, but Naruto is weak right now. He'll be sick for a while." Sasuke stood up, still holding onto his rival, and glared at the woman.  
  
"Spare me the childish crap." He snapped at her. "I don't need or want the sugar-coated version." In response he received a nervous chuckle.  
  
"I forget sometimes." Shaking her head, her voice took on a more authoritative tone. "Naruto must be pretty weak from fighting down the Kitsune, so he'll have to go to the hospital to have some seals placed on him temporarily to help him confine the Kitsune until he's strong enough to do it on his own."  
  
"Isn't a seal the thing that got him into this mess in the first place?"  
  
"Hai, but that wasn't a professional seal. It was made to wear off in a couple of hours." She smiled before continuing. "Not only does Naruto-kun need to regain his energy, but inside of him the demon will be putting up a fight, trying to get out." She hesitated. "Please tell this to no one." He nodded solemnly, letting Kakashi take a hold of the sleeping boy.  
  
***  
  
When they got to the hospital, Sasuke demanded to stay with Naruto while he slept. He wouldn't admit it to himself, but he didn't quite trust his friend alone with any of these people. A doctor once made the mistake of trying to keep him out of the room while they performed some tests and ended up pressed against the wall with the young Uchiha's hand gripping his throat, staring down at furious Sharingan eyes. Needless to say, everyone had been warned not to cross the boy, and no one said a word about visiting hours.  
  
Outside the door, Tsunade had a couple of Anbu guards watch over the room to make sure no one took advantage of the boy while he was weak, though not many knew he was in the hospital in the first place. It wasn't until a couple of days later that a disturbance outside the door quirked Sasuke's annoyance enough to get him to open the door to find out what the problem was.  
  
"Let me in!" A high pitched voice wailed. "I have every right to see my team mate. Sasuke!!" Hearing his name, the genin poked his head out, a mask of annoyance on his face.  
  
"Sakura, why are you making so much noise?" Seeing that the girl was welcomed, the Anbu stepped aside to let the pink-haired girl through.  
  
"Sasuke!" She exclaimed, walking into the hospital room, giving the boy a quick check up of her own. "Daijoubu ka? I heard that you were in the hospital. I hope it wasn't anything too serious. You look well enough." He held up a hand to silence her. Her speed-talking was quickly starting to give him a headache.  
  
"Not me, Naruto." He motioned over to the bed where the boy still lay asleep. He hadn't so much as moved a muscle since he'd been brought in and doctors were starting to wonder if he was in a coma. "He's been here since he came back from that mission. Tsunade's guards found him at the main gates."  
  
Luckily, Tsunade had remembered the earlier lie and decided to tell everyone who learned of the blond boy in the hospital bed that he'd been wounded on his mission.  
  
"But he's got no scratches on him." The pink-haired girl moved closer to the bedside. Stumbling on his words for a moment, Sasuke adlibbed his response.  
  
"People are saying in was all internal. He won't wake up." She nodded to him in understanding.  
  
"So you've been here this whole time, watching over Naruto-kun?" There was a look of admiration on her face. He narrowed his eyes at her and returned to his chair.  
  
"Aa, the doctors said there might be a chance that the Kitsune will try and get out, and I figured I'd stay on guard too." A sigh floated towards him, but he didn't turn around to face her.  
  
"A lot of people are still fairly angry with him for causing the Orochimaru incident." She whispered, slightly fazed when he just nodded again. She didn't know about what happened to Naruto in the Hokage Tower. Aside from Orochimaru and his subordinates, only four other people knew; Naruto, Sasuke, Shikamaru and Tsunade. Sasuke wasn't even sure if Shikamaru really knew or had just assumed. "Why don't you go get a sandwich? From what I've heard you haven't stepped out of this room in days."  
  
He looked up at her and was about to argue when she went over and pulled him forcefully out of the chair.  
  
"Sakura!" He protested, but she shoved him to the door.  
  
"Go! Naruto will still be here when you get back. I'll even keep watch for you." Nodding, he turned and left the room. The kunoichi watched him leave, longing written all over her face. She knew Sasuke didn't even feel a twitch of feeling for her, and ever so slowly, she was starting to lose faith in he advances on him. Aside from his obsession with his brother, Naruto was the only one he ever showed any sort of emotion for.  
  
And suddenly she found herself envious of the blond lying in the hospital bed. Even if it was nothing but hatred, at least Naruto had always been able to stir something in her crush, while all she produced was a mild case of annoyance. Even his annoyance with her was practically nonexistent. She sighed and sat down in Sasuke's seat by the bed.  
  
Leaning forward, she noticed something that they'd both obviously overlooked when she'd arrived. Littering Naruto's face and arms were a number of tiny scratches and bruises. She was surprised for a moment and wondered how she could have possibly missed the marks completely.  
  
She was about to sit back in the chair and leave the question for when Sasuke returned, but all of a sudden a large red gash opened up just beneath her team mates eye, slicing all the way down his cheek and disappearing under the neck of the hospital robes. It had appeared out of no where. Stifling a panicked scream, Sakura scrambled for the emergency button, her hands shaking too much to get a proper hold on it. Blood began to spill onto the pillow, and though she was pressing the button feverously, no one seemed to be answering the call. She choked back a sob and stumbled backwards, placing a hand over her mouth. After nearly tripping over the chair behind her, she ran towards the door. Tearing it open, she cried out into the empty hall way.  
  
"HELP! Somebody, please come and help!!" She looked back hesitantly to her friend and was horrified to find that even from a distance, she could see more and more cuts opening up on the boy's body. The sheets were beginning to turn an awful shade of red and Sakura found that she couldn't stand the sight any longer. Running from the room and holding her mouth for a different reason, she headed towards the nearest washroom, fighting off the nausea with every foot step.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah... short... don't complain. The next chapter should be out by the end of the March Break...  
  
How do you like the old Naruto? Yeah, sure... be picky and say he hasn't been awake for more than thirty seconds in his old body. Bah... whiners. Heh heh... Sooo... what's with the scratches? Hee hee... you should know this one... it was already said... anywho... I suppose I should shut up so I can post this, ne?  
  
Hope you enjoyed it... see ya in a couple of days.  
  
(I wonder if anyone notices what I'm doing with Sakura... besides making her puke... I mean in terms of her character... and her crush on Sasuke). 


	27. Locked In

Yeah, I'm back again. Does anyone get annoyed with how much I'm posting? I'm neglecting my hmwk. I'm going to be in sooooo much trouble, but I don't care. I love this story so much so I'm going to keep on going.  
  
WAI!! GWFasc actually knew what was going on. I'm so proud!!  
  
Chapter Title: 27. Locked In  
  
Naruto winced, flailing his arms wildly in the darkness. He couldn't see and he was badly injured, but he wouldn't give up. A haunting laugh floated to him from the infinite blackness which served to chill him to the bone. He staggered on his feet, wanting nothing more than to allow the darkness to swallow him whole, but he'd never been one to back away from any kind of challenge without giving it everything he had. He wasn't going to let the Kyuubi win this time. He'd fought so hard to earn some ounce of respect in the village, and he would be damned if he'd let some demon ruin his dreams.  
  
"Stop hiding in the darkness, coward!!" He yelled, not knowing what direction the Kitsune was coming from. From every direction came the soft sound of padded footfalls, circling the spot in which he stood. It unnerved him to no end and he heard his echoing voice falter. "I know how it feels to be caged, but you deserved it for what you did to all those villagers. I can't let you get free." Though he sympathised with the fox, he knew it would be the end of his home if he let that sympathy control him. From the corner of his eye he caught the flash of claws, but he didn't have enough time to move and cried out feeling them sink into his cheek. Stumbling to his knees, he lifted his hands to the angry red line that tore its way down his face and under his clothing and choked back a sob at the blood that pooled in his palms.  
  
"If you kill me you kill my body, baka!" He snarled, but still the beast circled.  
  
***  
  
Staggering back to the boy's room, the first thing she noticed was the absence of the Anbu guards. Frowning, she pulled off the note on the door and read it to herself. It said that their shift had ended twenty minutes ago and the new guards would be there shortly. Muttering curses under her breath, she pushed the door open and peeked in warily. Some of the cuts had sealed back up, but no one had listened to her calls for help. Getting angry with the way people still treated her friend, she marched her way over to the nearest nurse.  
  
"Excuse me." She spat with all the sarcasm she could muster. The woman looked up from her clipboard and sighed, irritating Sakura even more.  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"I want you to go and get the Hokage right this instant." Sakura exclaimed, glaring viciously at the woman.  
  
"Doushite?"  
  
"It's an emergency, don't ask questions." The nurse looked highly offended that a teenager would be ordering her around, but she saw the look on her supervisor's face and nodded curtly.  
  
Turning around quickly, Sakura brushed past the man and back into the room, intending to get past her slight unease with the blood and try to stem some of it on her own. She couldn't believe that some people would despise Naruto so much that they would deny him treatment. Looking around the room, she spotted a roll of bandages she could use to cover the wounds.  
  
"Naruto, you stupid idiot, don't you dare give up on me!" She yelled, when she'd finished tying the last one. They were quickly turning red from the excess blood, but there was nothing more she could do until Tsunade got back.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke was walking slowly back to the room when he heard Sakura's frantic yelling. At first he was startled, but fear flooded him and he ran the rest of the way back to the hospital room.  
  
"What's going on?" He demanded, throwing open the door. Sakura was sitting pale in his seat, looking slightly dazed. The blankets were pulled up tight around Naruto's body. She looked up and sighed, reaching over to pull back the blankets. He gasped seeing his friend covered in so much blood. Growling under his breath, he stalked to the bed and grabbed the boy by his shoulders.  
  
"Wake up, Dobe!" his voice was tight, betraying his panic but his face was blank.  
  
"Sasuke!" Sakura reprimanded, pulling his hands back slowly. "Let him rest. Just be thankful that what ever was causing those marks has seemed to stop for the time being."  
  
He muttered under his breath but stepped away from the bed. The pink-haired genin sighed deeply, watching her crush, and furrowed her brow. Seeing his reaction to Naruto reminded her that there was little to no chance that he'd get that upset if she was ever in the same situation. These thoughts depressed her greatly.  
  
They waited patiently for some time, both keeping their gazes on the pale boy in the bed, watching as cuts healed and opened. Even though Sakura kept her attention on Naruto, she couldn't help but notice the way Sasuke's frame seemed to flinch involuntarily every time he spotted another cut opening. She tore her eyes from Naruto's figure and glared at her hands, trying to keep back the tears that had started to blur her vision.  
  
'Why can't he feel this way for me?' She thought sadly, clenching and unclenching her fists.  
  
***  
  
Naruto collapsed to the floor panting and gasping for breath. The Kitsune had stepped into the small amount of light and began slashing at the poor boy. He was horrified to see that for every gash he received, the demon was hurt as well. The only problem with that was, while he lay in a pool of his own blood, the Kitsune's wounds healed almost instantaneously. The Kitsune laughed mockingly at him a number of times, but Naruto still refused to give in. He stood up stubbornly and looked around for something he could use to help himself. It was his mind after all. He found nothing.  
  
But just as he was starting to lose faith, he spotted something gleaming gold just beyond the fox's menacing form. Smirking, he began running for the object, keenly aware that the Kitsune was following close behind; nipping angrily at his heels. When he finally reached the gate, he ran through and slammed the door shut. Heaving all his weight against the door, he braced for the Kitsune's impact on the door, looking around frantically for the lock that kept the Kyuubi sealed. A mean laugh echoed through his head and he looked up to find himself drowning in the glowing red eyes of the monster everyone feared or hated.  
  
"Did you really think you could keep me sealed? Where's your lock? Or did you forget that the seal is the lock." It mocked him, snapping its teeth through the bars, just barely missing his head. "You're too weak to keep me sealed forever. You will go down with your stupid optimism, dobe." Its voice took on a more violent tone, taunting Naruto the way Sasuke used to when they were younger. The blond winced and slid down the bars to bury his face in his knees. He was starting to lose his hope and quickly.  
  
***  
  
Tsunade burst into the room and, offering no explanation pulled back the covers on top of Naruto's sleeping body. Both Sakura and Sasuke were startled by her intrusion, but they didn't have any time to voice their objections. She'd known exactly what was wrong the moment the nurse stepped into her office and she rushed over immediately. If she didn't get there fast enough there wouldn't be a boy left there to save.  
  
The older woman quickly scanned the boy's navel and found the faint outline of the seal. Taking a closer look, she confirmed her guess. The two elephant seals had been smudged when Ebisu's seal has worn off, giving the fox demon even more power over Naruto's body. Closing her eyes, Tsunade formed the intricate hand seals and placed both of her palms on Naruto's stomach.  
  
The seal didn't require any words, just the right amount of chakra to reaffirm the already existing seal. Her only hope was that she sealed the right soul on the right side of the gate. Things wouldn't bode too well if both were sealed or if Naruto was sealed away.  
  
"Wake up now, Naruto-kun!" She yelled, removing her hands. Nothing happened.  
  
***  
  
Naruto was shocked when the old familiar lock snapped into place on the gate. Letting out a howl of disbelief, the demon continued to slam into the gate, trying to free itself, but got nowhere. A small smile crept on the blonde's face and he stuck his tongue out at the beast.  
  
"What were you saying about stupid optimism?" He taunted, jumping back from the claws that came swiping down on him.  
  
***  
  
After a couple of minutes panicking, Tsunade and his team mates were relieved to find Naruto shift under the covers and slowly wake up. He blinked a couple of times and sat up, wincing in pain at the movement. Looking down he found that most of his wounds were healing underneath the multitude of bandages. Before he could examine his body too much he was enveloped in a tight bear hug.  
  
"Itai!!" He yelped and the woman backed down. He was shocked to find Tsunade had tears running down her cheeks and a smile playing with her lips.  
  
"Do you know how hard it is to keep you alive?" She scolded. He laughed nervously in response. "First your heart nearly stops and I'm forced to heal you. Then I take a sword to the side for you from Orochimaru, and now this!" Though her tone was reprimanding, her eyes were happy. "You won't live long enough to become Hokage." Naruto smiled, too tired to retort, and turned to the side to find Sasuke and Sakura watching over him.  
  
The dark-haired genin seemed to be angry beyond words to learn that this wasn't the first time Naruto had only barely escaped death, and the young kunoichi was rubbing away tears of joy just to see him safe again. He put on a bright smile for them, glad to know they'd been right by his side.  
  
"The seal had worn off, Naruto." Tsunade said, poking him in the stomach. He looked down to see that with the completed seal it was fading away fast.  
  
"Arigatou, Tsunade-baba." She rolled her eyes at him and ruffled his hair playfully.  
  
"I guess that's all I'm needed for here." She stood up and turned to the other two. "Take care of this brat for me?" They nodded and she left the room to head back to her office.  
  
When she'd disappeared from sight Sakura stepped forward and smacked Naruto in the back of the head.  
  
"Itai, Sakura-chan!!" He cried out, rubbing the spot she'd whacked. "What was that for?"  
  
"For scaring me half to death and making me worry!! I thought you were going to die!!"  
  
"Ne, ne! Daijoubu!" He grinned. "But since you were so worried, how about when I get out of here, you and me go out on a date! It'll make up for you all missing my birthday last month!" Sakura hesitated, glancing at Sasuke who had moved to the back of the room, near the door and had his gaze fixed on the blond boy beneath the sheets. Frowning, she realised it would take a miracle for him to notice her and she didn't know if she could wait for him her entire life. She was already sixteen after all. Looking back to Naruto she saw a sparkle in his eyes that she'd always longed for from darker ones. Sighing softly, she nodded her head.  
  
"Hai, Naruto-kun, I'll go out on a date with you." Apparently Naruto had been expecting any answer except that one, for he froze up, stunned.  
  
"Honto ne?" He asked, his voice small. She smiled, gaining courage and nodded again. His face brightened even more and he leaned forward to give her a big hug. In his head he was singing. It was his very first girlfriend. Who knew, maybe she'd even be his very first kiss. His thoughts came to a sudden stop when he remembered 'that' incident. He frowned and shot Sasuke a glare.  
  
"Baka, Sasuke." He muttered under his breath, secretly despising the boy for stealing his very first kiss. He wasn't at all surprised that the Uchiha raised an eyebrow at the feeble attempt. He was shocked, though, to see that Sasuke seemed to know what he was thinking and instead of a glare, sent Naruto a satisfied smirk.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Heh heh... can you believe how fast these are coming out? Whee! So Sasuke's no longer horrified by the thought of their first kiss, and Naruto's gone and gotten himself a girlfriend. Is this the end of my yaoi streak? I think not. Either way, Sakura's relationship with Naruto is sure to spice things up a bit between the two boys.  
  
Oh and I'm surprised no one noticed it, though a couple of you thought you knew what I was talking about. In the previous chapter I was setting it up so that Sakura would be able to accept Naruto's request for a date. Sure she still likes him but everyone goes through a couple of people before settling down with their true loves. Or at least that's how she sees it. Plus she's trying to play the jealousy card. Hoping Sasuke will start fighting with Naruto over her... heh heh... Course I'm not one to make things simple. Yes there will be fighting... but the instigator is someone you'd least expect, and the reason is even weirder.  
  
Anywho... about my previous comments about Sakura-bashing... while there are fics where I love to hate her, I honestly don't despise her too much. She's actually a nice person, even though she's not much of a fighter. Even Ino's got a specialized attack. But in this story (coming up very soon in fact) there will be circumstances that will make people wish she were dead. I'm not kidding and I'm definitely not exaggerating. Whether you love her or hate her you will think her choices are quite foolish esp. since her crush on Sasuke persists.  
  
Right... I'm sure you've all stopped reading by now so... onto the next one! 


	28. Being Mislead

Wow... I can't believe I broke 300 reviews. I've never been so shocked in my whole entire life. 196 was the most I've ever gotten... and of course ff.n has to go and delete my fic right on the 100th one. I've also never done a story this long before. ALSO I've never been interested this much in a story for such a long period of time. So this one is dedicated to reviewer 300(Luna) and Skittles the Sugar Fairy who reviewed not five minutes after I posted (at four in the morning).  
  
Chapter Title: 28. Being Mislead  
  
For a couple of weeks, Sakura and Naruto went everywhere together. He took her out to ramen every other day and she dragged him along while she went shopping for warmer clothing in the winter months. And they were quite the pair. Sakura would pound on him like usual and he would follow after her. It was almost as though nothing had changed. Almost. When he wasn't around Sakura, Naruto would become withdrawn and silent, and they hardly ever showed any sign of affection save the occasional friendly hug. The other exception was the reaction that occurred whenever Naruto was within ten feet of Sasuke.  
  
Sasuke was in the forest late one night letting off steam from the sheer number of stupid and frustrating assignments Kakashi had piled on him when an even darker shadow fell upon his place of rest. He'd just toppled two trees and was relaxing before he worked on the third, but when that shadow appeared, he tensed up and shivered feeling the hairs on the back of his neck prickling. He knew who it was.  
  
"What do you want, Naruto-kun?" He stood up, dusting off his warm pants and turned to the blonde boy, not at all surprised to find the familiar sneer on his face. "Why can't you ever smile normally?" He asked aloud. Naruto frowned, but the smirk never left his face. In an instant, he had Sasuke knocked off his feet and rolling with him in the snow. Not putting up much of a fight, Sasuke allowed himself to be pinned to the cold hard ground.  
  
"What, have you realised that I'm better than you and are finally giving up?" He snarled lamely. Sasuke rolled his eyes and pushed the boy away from him angrily. He was starting to get annoyed with Naruto's recent behaviour.  
  
"Go away."  
  
"Are you angry because I got the girl?"  
  
"No, I've been having a bad week. I could care less about Sakura."  
  
"Well then it's obviously because I finally bested you in something. You just can't admit it." Sasuke snarled at his rival.  
  
"You beat me in nothing, dobe."  
  
If he hadn't been too full of himself, Naruto would have known to take caution at the sight of Sasuke's Sharingan wheels. They had begun to spin dangerously as the Uchiha got angrier. He didn't need Naruto making his day worse, but he figured he'd play Naruto's little game for a moment to let off some steam. He lunged at the boy and they began fighting again.  
  
Jumping back from each other, Sasuke smirked and pulled out a few shuriken. He hadn't been able to spar with anyone in a long time and it felt good to be in a real fight. It relieved some of the tension built up from waiting for a possible outbreak of war between the Sand. They fought with shuriken and kunai, jutsus and fists until they were both too tired to do anything more than collapse in a heap together, Naruto splayed out, face down, over Sasuke's stomach.  
  
"Thank you for taking my mind off of my stupid missions." Sasuke breathed. Naruto turned his head to the side and moved back slightly so it rested just below his partner's ribs, grinning like mad.  
  
"I don't mind. I needed to vent and you looked like you needed a vent too." He closed his eyes and slowed his breathing until he was fast asleep. Sasuke would have chuckled to himself if he hadn't thought the movement would wake the sleeping fox.  
  
They had been sparing like this ever since Naruto and Sakura had started dating, and for the life of him, he couldn't understand why. The blonde would just lunge at him for some unprovoked reason and fight and fight until he worked whatever tension he was facing out of his system. Aside from the villagers' growing dislike for him, Naruto had just about everything he'd ever wanted. Tsunade and the other genins were fairly friendly to him. Sakura was his girlfriend. He was continually proving his strength against Sasuke. But still the dark shinobi couldn't wrap his mind around the reason for the boy's constant need for an outlet.  
  
He sighed to himself and sat up, gathering Naruto in his arms. Dusting off some of the snow, he began walking to the apartments, ignoring how light Naruto had gotten. Maybe he just sparred with him because he couldn't get to sleep. He sighed and shook his head. Maybe he'd just ask in the morning.  
  
***  
  
In the morning, however, Naruto avoided all of Sasuke's questions and even managed to turn a few on the boy himself. Sasuke dropped the topic and left the apartment to go home and change. Naruto was surprised that he hadn't left a change at his house with the number of times he ended up sleeping on the blonde's couch. Sasuke had once tried to leave, but Naruto had effectively hidden the key, and fearing burglars or something worse, Sasuke had been forced to spend the night. He never did find the key.  
  
Frowning to himself, Naruto pondered over the questions his rival had brought up. To be honest, he'd never really thought about it. Hell, he didn't even truly know the answer himself. Sighing to himself he decided to just go early to their meeting place to find out what kind of mission Kakashi had called them all together for. He quickly got dressed, not even having to think of what to wear, and went to the kitchen to get a quick breakfast.  
  
He stopped outside of the smaller guest room and glared at the white washed wood for a moment. He remembered the first time Sasuke had slept over, it was just after the 'Orochimaru Incident' and he had refused to let him anywhere near the room. The dark-haired genin was confused and argued that the couch was no place for a guest, but Naruto would not be swayed. He told Sasuke that if he wanted to stay over he would either take the couch or get out. Reluctantly, Sasuke had stayed on the couch, but every time Sasuke was over Naruto was afraid Sasuke would go into the room.  
  
He was afraid Sasuke would learn his secret. But he would have known if someone entered it without his permission. He'd seen Sasuke when he woke up. From the look on his face, Naruto could tell that he hadn't seen what was inside.  
  
Shaking his head with a sigh, he continued on to the kitchen, not bothering to open the door.  
  
***  
  
When Kakashi finally showed up on the bridge spanning the frozen river, he had Sakura in tow. Naruto bounded over excitedly, not bothering for a moment to lecture his sensei about being on time. He lavished massive amounts of attention on her, asking her how she slept, if she was in good spirits, if she was prepared for the mission. She hesitated at his exaggerated affections, glancing sadly at Sasuke, before smiling at her boyfriend and answering his questions. Sasuke ignored both of them altogether. Seeing that he wasn't even paying her any mind, Sakura sighed to herself and paid more attention to the blonde.  
  
She found that, while she had no feelings for him as a boyfriend, he was actually not as annoying as she'd previously thought. She had gotten to know him better, and she was surprised that Naruto was forcing things to stay the same as before almost as much as she was. The most they'd ever done was hug or hold hands.  
  
Kakashi cleared his throat to get their attention. Putting his book in his back pocket he looked from Naruto to Sasuke.  
  
"Shikamaru-kun has a mission for you two if you'd accept." He stated. Naruto frowned slightly and looked back to Sakura, noticing for the first time that she wasn't wearing any of her gear for a mission. Apparently she'd already known about the mission before hand.  
  
"Why not me and Sakura?" He asked.  
  
"And what if the enemy gets a hold of Sakura? She'd be used against you." Kakashi waved a finger in front of his nose. "Shikamaru requested both you and Sasuke because he also knows that you two won't mess up a mission by fooling around with each other." All three of his students turned crimson at this.  
  
"Get your mind out of those books, pervert." Sasuke muttered under his breath.  
  
"Of course this mission will be very dangerous," he continued, pretending he didn't hear Sasuke's snide remark. "So, if you two are too afraid to go together on this mission, I'm sure I can find someone else for the mission, but Shika-"  
  
"I'll go!"  
  
"I'll go!"  
  
"-maru would be so disappointed as he picked both of you personally." Kakashi grinned. They were so easy to predict. Neither one wanted to be out done by the other, even though they hadn't heard the details of the assignment. "GO and see him now then; he should be at home waiting for your responses." The two nodded in understanding before Naruto turned to Sakura.  
  
"Don't miss me too much!" He laughed. "I promise to bring you home something really special if you promise to wait for me."  
  
"Ganbatte Sasuke-kun, Naruto-kun!" She waved them off as they started to walk over to the Nara household. She was slightly disappointed that she wasn't allowed to go with them, but she'd been offered to study some healing methods with Tsunade while they were gone and she figured that learning a thing or two about the practice would end up benefiting her team more than if she tagged along. Just as she turned to go back home, Kakashi stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.  
  
"Don't hurt him, Sakura." He said. For a moment she was confused before she remembered Naruto.  
  
"I would never intentionally hurt Naruto-kun." She replied. "I actually kind of like him now, even if it's not exactly in the way he wants me to."  
  
"Don't let your selfishness mislead that boy." Kakashi persisted, a frown evident even with most of his face covered. He didn't seem to approve of their relationship. The kunoichi huffed before walking away. She didn't think her selfishness would hurt anyone. Plus, Kakashi didn't know what he was talking about.  
  
***  
  
"You'll go undercover in the Sand village in order to learn what some of the attack plans are against us." Shikamaru told them. "Undercover means one of you may have to switch genders in order to remain hidden."  
  
"What?!" Naruto exclaimed. He remembered quite vividly the last time he was a female and never wanted to have to repeat that performance. Seeming to understand his concern, Sasuke spoke up.  
  
"I'll do it." He also remembered that Shikamaru would recognise Naruto's jutsu and he figured that volunteering would save them a whole lot of grief. "But why aren't you going?" He asked on the side. Shikamaru made a weak attempt at a glare and rolled his eyes dejectedly.  
  
"I would have gone, except this mission requires people to work as closely as possible. The only person I'd trust that much to do the mission with me is Chouji... Ino would end up shopping or something, and any of the others I don't trust as much. I needed absolute trust. Well..." He hesitated, rubbing the back of his head and muttering 'she's so bothersome' under his breath. "Ino wouldn't let me go with Chouji, so I had to pass on the mission and give it to two people I felt could work as closely as I could with Chouji. I didn't even have to think about it. You do have an absolute faith in each other, right?"  
  
They both looked at each other before blushing and nodding curtly, turning their heads away from one another in embarrassment.  
  
"Well, I want to make sure your disguises are perfect before you head off."  
  
Looking even more affronted, Sasuke went first.  
  
"Henge no jutsu!" He muttered, and when the smoke cleared, he looked like a very pissed version of his Sexy no Jutsu. The Chuunin nodded and looked expectantly to Naruto.  
  
"Henge!" The blonde cried. It took a second for the smoke to clear and when it did, even the lazy Shikamaru had to raise an eyebrow. "What? What did I do wrong?" Naruto's voice was a lot deeper than usual.  
  
"Nothing, it's just... what were you aiming for?"  
  
"To make myself look a lot older."  
  
"Well... it's really weird... I've seen pictures."  
  
"What are you talking about?"  
  
"You're the spitting image of the Fourth."  
  
***  
  
"He doesn't know what he's talking about." Naruto complained, dropping the jutsu once they reached the outside of the village.  
  
"He's right though, Naruto-kun. Didn't you see how many people were staring at you like you were some sore of god?" Sasuke snickered before he too dropped the jutsu. They hadn't wanted anyone to know that they were heading out on a mission. To the village they just appeared to be passing through.  
  
They'd been given a number of supplies; enough to last for a week and ordered to return in two days to report all that they'd seen or heard.  
  
"Why didn't you want to do your jutsu again?" Sasuke asked after a few moments of walking in silence.  
  
"How'd you know?"  
  
"I could read it in your face."  
  
"I guess I was afraid of it. Last time I did it I was stuck inside of my head fighting a losing battle with that stupid fox." Sasuke asked a couple more questions but Naruto clammed up and refused to say anything more about the subject.  
  
"Why are you being so stubborn about this?" Sasuke spat in frustration. Right when they were starting to get somewhere.  
  
"I don't see why it's any of your business!" True, Sasuke thought, but he was being too defensive for it not to be his business.  
  
"If it gets in the way of our mission, then that makes it my business!" He snapped back. "Do you want to fight me or something?" Naruto stopped and dropped his backpack into the January snow. "Why don't you just show me how strong the Uchiha blood really is." Sasuke blinked in surprise, confused as to why Naruto was acting like this. He glared softly at the boy and continued walking, ignoring the challenge.  
  
"We have a mission to complete, baka. I don't have time to deal with your childish attitude." Naruto sighed and picked up his things again, sprinting to catch up to his rival. Sasuke decided to lay off his rival for a bit.  
  
***  
  
Kakashi wasn't at all impressed with the way Sakura handled his warning, but decided to let it pass for the time being. He wouldn't let it ruin his dinner. Not that there were many things that could spoil his dinner.  
  
He had stopped by Iruka's place later on that day and invited the teacher out for dinner. The younger man was surprised and for a moment believed it was a turning point in their non-existent relationship, but there was still a coldness in Kakashi's voice that prevented him from getting closer. He agreed to the dinner deciding to let Kakashi take things at his own speed.  
  
He ate his ramen in silence (Kakashi had done another speed-eat), watching the jounin from above his bowl. Kakashi seemed to be reading his perverted book again, but Iruka wondered if it was just a way of throwing people off guard. He smiled at this and was about to voice his question when a gleam caught his eye, heading straight for them.  
  
"Kakashi!" It was Gai, followed closely by Lee. "I see this fine young man has distracted you from our rivalry!" He looked only slightly upset, still wanting to show off his wonderfully bright smile.  
  
"Ne, Kakashi-sensei, is it true what I've heard about Sakura dating Naruto- kun?" Lee spoke out, seeing that his sensei had taken to posing in an effort to show off in front of Kakashi. Only Iruka was paying any attention, looking alternatively sick and amused at the same time.  
  
"Where have you been, Lee? They've been dating for just over a month now!" Lee was still limping, but it was obvious that he was trying to regain his old Taijutsu skills with the help of his team mates. Suddenly, he burst out crying.  
  
"It's so unfair!" He wailed and clung to his teacher, sobbing his heart out dramatically. Everyone in the ramen bar turned around to see what all the noise was about. "But I haven't given up hope yet! I will not lose to Naruto! Even if it's for one drunken night, I will get my moment with Sakura-chan!" He made a valiant pose with Gai-sensei. Iruka looked to Kakashi nervously, wondering why he'd missed the weirdness of Lee when he was in the academy. Kakashi returned his attention to his book, neither impressed or overly shocked by the dramatic outburst, while everyone else sweatdropped and went back to their dinners.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Oh, about a possibility of Sasuke getting jealous... heh heh... nothing doing. He's had practice concealing his emotions so there won't be too many outbursts by him (*drools over the only one she can remember*). But also, he's way too smart to get angry over them two anyways... (*zips again*)  
  
I hope I was able to get Shikamaru and Lee-kun's personalities right. I don't have much experience in writing these two, even tho I love them to death (Shikamaru especially). Without giving too much away, expect to see a lot more of them in the future.  
  
Oh and to all you people who think this story has abandoned the YAOI... I hope you will be very happy when you read the next chapter. It's one I've been waiting to type up for a very very very long time now. Yesh this means there's going to be some SHOUNEN AI in the next chapter, and yes it's ~*NARUSASU*~.  
  
Hopefully people who skip the AN will see that. *grins*  
  
And the next part will be out in a couple of days! 


	29. One Little Kiss

Muaha! Yesh... the long awaited shounen ai chapter. Hahahah. *SMOOOOOOCH* Enjoy...  
  
Chapter Title: 29. One Little Kiss  
  
That evening, Sasuke and Naruto had rented themselves a small room in an inn for the night, and both were lying side by side on the large king size bed chatting. They had slowly started on the topic of Naruto's relationship with Sakura, again, and it didn't take Sasuke long to figure out that Naruto was trying to bait him into attacking again.  
  
"Naruto, stop trying to provoke me." He whispered when there was a pause in the conversation.  
  
"What are you talking about?" came the reply, angrier than it should have been.  
  
"Don't be an idiot. I'm not going to let you start a fight. We should be working together, not against one another."  
  
"Don't give me that righteous crap. You know you're just itching for a fight." Naruto sat up and smacked Sasuke's leg which had been right beside his head.  
  
"Get lost, dobe." The Uchiha ignored the swat for the time being, but the blonde smirked, wondering how far he could go before his rival snapped. He hit the leg again, harder this time. Sasuke kicked back.  
  
"Oi, watch where you aim that thing!" Naruto yelled and pinched the offending limb.  
  
"Naruto!" Sasuke sat up, curling his legs away from the boy. "Stop!" He demanded, his voice was low and commanding.  
  
"Or else what?" came the equally low taunt. "You wouldn't hit poor innocent me, would you?"  
  
"You're anything but innocent."  
  
"Yeah, Orochimaru made sure of that one didn't he." The blonde snarled and launched himself at his rival, knocking them both out of the bed. They tumbled around on the floor, trying to gain the advantage, while ignoring the fact that there were people below them. Sasuke got in a couple of punches before being thrown onto his back, arms pinned to the floor.  
  
"You owe me a rematch, Uchiha." The fox-boy smirked down at him. "I want a real fight." Sasuke narrowed his eyes, and with the speed learned from copying Lee's Taijutsu, pulled his hands out of Naruto's grasp and knocked his rival off of him.  
  
They alternated between fists and feet, until Naruto pulled a low trick and bit down on the dark-haired boy's shoulder, hard. Cursing, Sasuke used the same shoulder to knock the boy off his feet and pinned him to the ground. They could both hear voices on the other side of the door, but all that set in was the pounding of their heartbeats and their panting breath. Sasuke turned his head slightly, registering the pounding on the door and the turning of a key in the lock, and quickly performed his jutsu to avoid any questions. Just as the doorknob finally turned and the door opened, Sasuke returned his gaze to Naruto who leaned up and whispered 'That's not enough,' wrapping his arms around his rival's neck and pulled him down into a kiss.  
  
At first they were both surprised at the soft contact, but the owner of the inn had just walked in, wondering what all the noise was about and they knew that seeing them in such a compromising position answered any questions he had for them. Naruto was the first to close his eyes, putting a little bit of feeling into the kiss, hoping that the owner would leave sooner rather than later. Sasuke's lids slid shut soon after, finally getting over the shock of the spontaneous action and realising what Naruto was trying to achieve.  
  
He gradually relaxed his body and threaded his fingers between his rivals and moaned softly, and he couldn't tell if it was for effect or whether it was real, but he didn't care to think about it too hard. As soon as they heard the door click shut behind the flustered manager they broke apart, still gasping for breath, only now for a completely different reason.  
  
"Well, it was better than the first one." Naruto spoke up after a few moments of silence. They'd both moved away from each other slowly; the tension in the air thickening all around them. Sasuke turned to look at the blond, a bewildered expression on his face. He nodded slowly in agreement. Naruto blushed, realising what he'd just said and waved his hands in front of himself to correct his meaning.  
  
"I mean, at least this time one of us was a girl, ne?" He chuckled nervously, eyes closing in a familiar vulpine grin. He sat down on the solitary bed and looked u at the ceiling.  
  
"It was still you and me." The fox-boy didn't think too hard about there being any meaning behind Sasuke's softly spoken words. They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a couple more moments before the tension finally got to the normally loud-mouthed ninja.  
  
"You know, me and Sakura have never kissed yet?" He exclaimed. "Well, at least, not on the lips. I've never really felt ready to do it... and she's never one to start something." He shared another nervous laugh, looking up to find Sasuke watching him from the other side of the bed. There was a strange look in his eyes that Naruto just couldn't seem to place. He looked slightly confused and smug at the same time. It was an odd combination.  
  
"You're not ready to kiss Sakura on the lips," The Uchiha repeated slowly, as though testing the feel of them on his tongue. "And yet you were still ready to kiss me?" This drew a startled gasp from the other boy whose shock quickly faded into frustration at the implications Sasuke was making. He frowned deeply.  
  
"This was different." He argued. "This was a life or death situation."  
  
"But you could have thought of something other than kissing me, right?" Naruto was getting upset; things weren't looking as black and white as he used to see it in his head, and Sasuke seemed to want to keep making him question himself. He snarled under his breath and stood up, ready to challenge the older boy when Sasuke sighed and waved his hand dismissively.  
  
"Just give the fighting a rest for now. I want to sleep." He shook his head as though to dispel whatever he may have wanted to say at the time and pulled off his clothes until he was left in his boxers. He climbed into the bed beside Naruto and rolled over so that his back was to the boy and he promptly fell asleep.  
  
Naruto stared at the pale skin for a few moments, watching his rival's back move up and down slowly, the moon casting ghostly silhouettes across the pale surface. He blushed furiously and slammed his fist into the pillow at the obvious snub. True, they did only have a day and a half left to gather information, and they might miss something if they didn't get an early start, but Naruto didn't want to drop it. He was confused. He wanted Sasuke to explain where the questions were coming from, but the gentle rise and fall of the other boy's side told him that Sasuke was not going to indulge in Naruto's little desires that night, if ever.  
  
"Maybe it's because I'm dating Sakura." He went to his fall-back excuse. If anything about Sasuke's behaviour couldn't be explained, that was the reason. "He's just jealous."  
  
***  
  
Back in Konoha Village, Lee was trying to convince Sakura to throw Sasuke and Naruto a welcome back party. He'd thought of everything (in between training sessions) and was pleading with the girl to help him.  
  
"Onegai, Sakura-chan!" He cried, pulling on her arm, hoping to annoy her enough to submit. She cocked an eyebrow at his efforts before a small smile crept onto her face.  
  
"Hai, Hai. I'll do it, just let go of my arm, baka." She laughed, sliding her arm out of the boy's grasp. "My parents are away from the village for a couple of days anyways, so we can have it there." Lee jumped up and clenched his fist heroically.  
  
"Then it's settled. I'll do all the preparations, and you can invite everyone!" He grinned. "Everyone needs a good party to liven the place up a little bit." His shoulders slumped at the thought of the rest of the village's depression and despair. They hadn't been truly right since Orochimaru had been killed nearly half a year ago. Naruto was normally the one who caused mischief enough to keep the spirits of the village high, but with him sinking slowly into a depression of his own, and the village's general hatred for the demon rising, there had been no time for fun of any kind.  
  
"It'll be a surprise for the two of them when they get home." Lee grinned, snapping quickly out of his sombre mood. "It will be one that neither of them will forget... EVER!! They'll never know what hit them." Sakura smiled briefly, following Lee down the street and listening to who he wanted to invite... basically he wanted everybody there.  
  
***  
  
In the morning, Naruto woke to the peaceful twitter of the birds, or, so he would tell everyone when he got home. He didn't want to tell anyone how he REALLY woke up. He shivered at the memory; waking up curled against Sasuke's bare chest, one arm pinned beneath the older boy's body and turning slightly blue, the other resting casually on the Uchiha's hip. It took him ten seconds to fully waken and another twenty to react to the fact that he was also staring up at narrowed black eyes. Naruto screamed and jumped backwards, cursing the bemused look that had settled on Sasuke's face.  
  
"Am I really that disgusting that you'd scream upon my face being the first thing you look at in the morning?" He stood up and gracefully strode to the bathroom, intending to have a shower before they left. He paused at the door, turning his head slightly. "*After* you gave my body the once over of course." He added thoughtfully, an obvious smirk evident in his voice.  
  
"Teme!!" Naruto called after him, more concerned with snapping back at the obvious slight as opposed to stopping to figure out what he was saying. It was a reflex response with Naruto now. The moment he heard that hint of sarcasm or amusement at the blond boy's expense, he was all teeth and claws, ready to defend himself. He knew Sasuke probably didn't mean much by it, but he enjoyed keeping the rivalry up.  
  
Frowning, he wondered about all the times he'd taken things too far while he was dating Sakura. He knew he was constantly pushing Sasuke's buttons, but he couldn't even tell himself the reason. He sighed, hearing the shower turn off and shoved the thought away. He didn't really care.  
  
Sasuke opened the door, dressed in a pair of shorts, his hair a mess under the damp white towel and smirked at Naruto again, knowing full well the reaction he'd get. Naruto stood up and became entirely ruffled, his face taught with a barely suppressed growl. It was always funny for Sasuke to be able to rile the boy up without saying a word. It was so easy.  
  
"You better have left me some hot water, you jerk." Naruto spat lamely. It was the best he could think of on the spot. He brushed past his rival and slammed the door shut. Sasuke snorted.  
  
"Of course, I'm not a hog like you." He called through the door, knowing exactly the faces Naruto was pulling on the other side.  
  
"You're worse!!" The kiss from the previous night was no longer the first thing on either boy's mind as they prepared for their mission.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well... I can't believe I finally got that done... I actually lost the sheet that had my notes for this chapter on it... panic attack. But I found it and I finished it. I know this is probably not the kind of action some of you were looking for, but do you really expect them to jump into bed immediately? NUU! It wouldn't be as believable... this way, you get to see them evolve together.  
  
And now Naruto has had his fist kiss with both another boy and a girl... both of them being Sasuke. Hee heh... you know I'm going to torture Naruto with this later... I almost feel sorry for Sasuke... well... almost. I still think he's a lucky bastard. (Damn... this story still hasn't gotten to an R rating yet... oh well... we're getting there... slowly)  
  
Till next time. 


	30. Allies

Chapter Title: 30. Allies  
  
When they had finished getting ready, and were set to leave, Naruto and Sasuke set off towards Sand, quite aware of the slightly amused looks they were getting from the owner and his wife. Naruto was unnerved by the congratulations the couple sent him, and continuously glanced over his shoulder until they were out of sight of the two.  
  
"Why do you keep doing that, dobe?"  
  
"Did you see the way they kept looking at us?" He replied, shaking his head. "I wonder why." Sasuke turned his head, long hair flowing to follow the movement and gave the blonde a bewildered look.  
  
"You mean you don't know?" He asked, smirking slightly. Snapping his head to stare at Sasuke, Naruto's eyes widened for an instant.  
  
"You mean you know?"  
  
"Of course. They think you and me had sex last night."  
  
"WHAT!??" Suddenly he was feeling quite faint and stopped for a moment, feeling the blood rush to his cheeks.  
  
"Don't tell me you forgot about the owner walking in on our little make-out session."  
  
"It was NOT a make-out session."  
  
"Well it looked like that to him, obviously. And I suppose he just made assumptions after that. You did make a lot of noise last night, and this stupid shirt doesn't hide the mark you gave me from biting my shoulder-" Naruto held up his hand to silence the girl.  
  
"I get the point." He sighed and continued walking. "But we didn't." He whined under his breath. They jumped into the trees and continued towards Sand in silence.  
  
***  
  
When they finally got to the front gates of the Sand village, Sasuke stopped them both. He turned with his back to the large doors and placed a hand on Naruto's chest. The blonde stopped and looked down at the girl.  
  
"What is it, Sasuke?" He asked. Sasuke looked up at him for a second before frowning.  
  
"This is a very dangerous place. Don't get me in trouble, dobe."  
  
"Me?" Naruto replied, slightly offended by his rival's concern. "I'll show you how much of a dobe I am." He glared, pushing the dark-haired girl out of his way angrily and ran into the village, disappearing almost instantly.  
  
"Naruto!!" Sasuke called after him, but he was already gone. He shook his head, and walked into the foreign village slowly. "Dobe." He muttered to himself, wondering for the hundredth time why Naruto was constantly attacking him. He sighed, not entirely sure if he'd ever know. Maybe it had something to do with nearly losing his battle with the Kyuubi.  
  
He wandered the streets, listening closely to snippets from everyone's conversation, while asking people if they'd seen her boyfriend. He decided to stick as close to the truth as possible, and asked if they'd seen the blonde man who'd disappeared on her earlier, leaving her by herself.  
  
He'd wandered for nearly half the day, without hearing any rumours, and not even a sign of his rival, though many people had seen him. One person ended up directing him to the Kazekage's office explaining that the man knew everything that went on in his village and if he needed to, could find anyone. Sasuke had thanked the person and ultimately found himself waiting outside the main office for a chance to speak with the man.  
  
"Why are you so intent on allying our village with them, when it was obvious before that we wanted to be rid of them a few years ago?" A voice drifted out into the hallway from the room.  
  
"Because I'm not the same person as my bastard father." Sasuke stared at the door, sure that he knew that voice from somewhere, though it was certainly deeper than he remembered.  
  
"No, he had more brains than you, demon."  
  
"Stop it, both of you. You're fighting like little kids." A female's voice broke through the petty argument.  
  
"Look, I want us to ally with the Leaf because my father's was not in his right mind when we teamed up with Sound the last time. Or did you forget the results of that raid, Kankuro?" The first speaker, Kankuro, growled under his breath but remained silent. "Sound is no longer a strong ally, everyone else knows this, and if we don't change our friends, other villages will see US as weak and decide to attack us."  
  
"I thought you liked bloodshed." Kankuro spat.  
  
"Of course I do, brother, but that doesn't mean I'm going to let my village fail because of that."  
  
"Why are you so keen on helping the village that shunned you?"  
  
"Because they didn't know any better. They were taught to believe I was a beast."  
  
"And now they know it's true."  
  
"Kankuro!" The female exclaimed.  
  
"Temari, it's true, I don't know why he's in this power position. Everyone keeps saying that Gaara's got some ulterior motive and is just itching to the ultimate torture." Sasuke stifled a gasp, finally recognising the voice of the demon he'd battled in the forest. He'd always wondered what happened to him. The beginning of the war was also the beginning of Sasuke's great resentment over Naruto's successes. He shook his head, letting his long hair cover his eyes for a moment, waiting for a bit longer before he left.  
  
"I may be thirsty for the spilling of blood, but we are weak against Leaf's other demon spirit, and while I am loathed to admit it, it would be a lot better if we teamed up against our enemies, rather than went against them. I'm sure Naruto-kun is even more powerful than before, and if that Uchiha boy survived... they have more than enough fire-power in their genins alone." Gaara seemed to rise from his seat. "Are we done now?"  
  
Sasuke took this as an ending to their meeting and decided he would be safer if he left now and found his partner and left. He had more than enough to fill up the report, and they needed to get out of there.  
  
Gaara peeked out the door a couple of seconds later to find the hallway completely empty. Smirking to himself, he returned to his office.  
  
"Are you sure that was Uchiha?" Kankuro asked, not entirely convinced of his brother's word.  
  
"Of course it was, I saw the loneliness in her eyes when she first came in. It was so much like it was all those years ago, except I believe it's lessened a little over time."  
  
"Why did you want to stage that conversation?" Temari asked, shifting from her spot on the desk. "We're not actually going to ally with that stupid village are we?"  
  
"Of course not." Gaara replied smoothly. Over the years his voice lost its gritty sound and adopted a more seductive purr. "I know exactly who we are going to ally with though, someone who is more than willing to take out the Kitsune for us, leaving the boy for me to take my revenge on of course, and will definitely be a shocker for the entire Leaf village." He laughed softly, ignoring the odd looks his siblings were giving him. He didn't care. He knew exactly how to win, and Leaf would be blind to his advances.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke growled angrily. He should have known the idiot would go to the first ramen bar he saw. He stalked right up to the boy, happily eating away at his fifth bowl and tapped him roughly on the shoulder. Customers and staff took note of the glare and moved away slowly in case of an explosion.  
  
"Uzumaki!" Sasuke shouted, the only name he could think of that wouldn't get them in trouble. The blonde turned around and his eyes went wide.  
  
"I was just-" Sasuke tossed the server a bit of money before dragging Naruto outside, too angry for words. When they were a safe distance from the village, Sasuke stopped and trained his outraged glare on the poor boy. He dropped his jutsu to make to darkened look even more effective.  
  
"WHAT WERE YOU DOING EATING ON OUR MISION?!" He yelled.  
  
"I was getting valuable information from one of the girls who eats there regularly. She was pretty cute too."  
  
"Did you forget you had a girlfriend, dobe?" He spat, ignoring the slightly guilty look that flashed across the younger boy's face for a moment.  
  
"I didn't think you cared." Naruto retorted, slightly offended. "It's not like I was going to cheat on her or anything."  
  
"No of course not, because she's our team mate and friend. Even you can't be that dishonourable." Naruto's eyes went momentarily red as he lunged at Sasuke, yelling and screaming. He couldn't stand having the dark-haired genin berate and belittle him for another second longer.  
  
"You think you're so great! You're nothing, Uchiha!" He screamed between punches. "You're just some scared little boy hiding behind your family name!!"  
  
Ordinarily, Sasuke never took anything Naruto said in his little rants seriously, but that comment struck a chord in him and his eyes glowed red with the Sharingan before it began spinning wildly. He, too, began hitting and yelling. It was a couple of minutes of flying limbs and insults before Sasuke managed to pin down the raging blonde. He was on top of Naruto, breathing hard and glaring with all his being and Naruto looked up defiantly to see the spinning Sharingan wheel. He took in a shuddering breath and snapped his eyes from the gaze, terrified.  
  
"Sasuke, no." He whispered, remembering his nightmares from a long time ago. The Sharingan being turned on him didn't come up to often in his dreams anymore, but the sight of it was still enough to make him terrified. "Please stop looking at me like that."  
  
For a moment, the eyes looked down on him with a hint of confusion, before they closed and reopened black as ever. Sasuke looked a lot calmer.  
  
"Stop being an idiot, you should know by now I'd never try and kill you. Hurt you, maybe, but I'm not going to betray you like your subconscious tells you. And stop trying to start fights with me." Naruto grumbled and shoved the older teen off of him.  
  
"Can we just spar for a little bit before we go back?" He asked. "I need to get this desire to fight with you out of my system." Sasuke sighed and stood up, pulling out a couple of kunai.  
  
"Fine, but only for a couple of minutes." Sasuke said, giving in. "I want to get back to the village before it gets too dark, I found out that Sand is planning on allying themselves with us. Plus, I don't want to waste my chakra, I'm running a little low from keeping up my disguise all day." He smirked before lunging at his rival, signalling the beginning of their quick match.  
  
***  
  
Rock Lee was having a tough time with one last decoration that wasn't obeying his wishes and absolutely refused to unravel itself. He cursed under his breath and tossed the ornament chain back into the box. They didn't have much in the way of decorations, but they made do, and they'd managed to gather a lot of support from their fellow genins. Even Shikamaru helped out (with a lot of lecturing from Ino), and now they were having fun just waiting for the last two to show up.  
  
"Shikamaru-kun, when do you expect them to be back by?" Sakura asked, tapping the boy on his shoulder. He smiled up at her, tipping his glass of punch sluggishly at her.  
  
"Around eight or nine." He slurred. "And that's factoring in the time it will take for them to fight, you know how they enjoy keeping up their rivalry." She nodded, trying to keep her frown too visible. Only another hour or so to go then.  
  
"I hope Naruto doesn't slow Sasuke down too much." She muttered under her breath. Shikamaru raised an eyebrow at her words, and would have commented but Ino decided to give him another glass of that wonderfully delicious punch and drag him off to dance. And he was surprised to find he didn't care either.  
  
Sakura walked over to the punch bowl, taking a glass for herself and downing it. She'd been thirsty for a while, and although it was slightly bitter on the way down, she insisted on pouring another couple of glasses of the stuff down her throat before she had had her fill. Suddenly the world looked brighter and dating Naruto didn't seem like such a bad idea. She smiled and walked over to Lee, giving him a quick peck on the cheek.  
  
"Thanks for this wonderful idea, Sasuke-kun!" She cheered loudly, latching onto his arm for a moment, before letting go and flitting towards another end of the room. Shikamaru, who was watching the occurrence, sweatdropped at that, laughing nervously with Lee.  
  
"I wonder who spiked the punch already." He slurred, looking around and spotted Kiba walking towards them, stuffing an empty bottle in his jacket and looking decidedly guilty.  
  
"Hey, guys!" He exclaimed, trying to avoid suspicion. Shikamaru sighed and shook his head, reaching up to smack Kiba's.  
  
"Even though I'm drunk you still manage to be troublesome."  
  
"Well someone's got to fill in Naruto's role while he's not here." Kiba said in his defence. Lee watched them talk quietly before shrugging and reaching for a glass of his own.  
  
"Why not?" He asked, pouring the foul stuff down his throat.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Heh heh... you all know that something's going to happen when alcohol is introduced as an excuse for future behaviour.  
  
I guess I should apologize for the crappy shounen ai attempt last chapter. It didn't seem to be up to par with the rest of my chapters, but I promise there will be more in the next few chapters, mostly as a result of the alcohol... no Sasuke does not get drunk. Neither does Naruto. You'll just have to wait for a couple of days to find that out.  
  
And yes, Gaara has some sort of reason for being introduced this chapter... maybe it will intice my friend to start reading this... lol... I doubt it tho. 


	31. Inhibitions

I was bored, so I thought I'd type this little tidbit up...  
  
Ack!! GWFasc... stop reading my mind!! Am I really that easy to predict? Of course, you aren't EXACTLY right about what's going to happen.  
  
Oh, and I know about Lee and his Alcohol-ness from a raw version of Naruto 210... lets just say he doesn't get too drunk this time around okay? (to tell the truth, he isn't drunk at all... he got one of the glasses that was poured before Kiba's infamous extra ingredient was added...) I didn't want to see Lee too drunk anyways, cause he has to be conscious of his actions. We'll save that tidbit for another chapter... thanks to Monimonika who sent me the info (cause I was too lazy to translate the chapter myself.  
  
Chapter Title: 31. Inhibitions  
  
"Do you remember Gaara of the Sand?" Sasuke asked, pushing back the gate to Leaf village. Naruto's head shot up at the name.  
  
"Mr. Panda-bear?" He asked, remembering the boy from their past. "What about him?"  
  
"He's the new Kazekage."  
  
"WHAT!? How did he become a Kage before me?!"  
  
"That's not the point." Sasuke said, becoming slightly irritated. "He's the one making all of the decisions. They're planning on allying themselves with us because it's more profitable that way." They walked into the village in silence for a few moments before Naruto remembered something he'd overheard.  
  
"I heard a couple of people saying they hadn't attacked us because they didn't know much about Tsunade and they wanted to wait and see what kind of a leader she was before they made any decisions." Sasuke nodded; he'd heard the same thing.  
  
He pulled out the scroll he'd written the information on and handed it to Naruto. "Give this to Tsunade, I'm tired and I want to go home." Naruto nodded and watched the boy walk home, shoulders slumped in exhaustion. He knew it was just a front, but he figured Sasuke just wanted to get a bit of rest. The blonde knew for a fact that even after a full day of training it only took a couple hours of sleep to get him back up to his regular pace.  
  
He turned around and headed quickly to the Hokage's office, jumping along the roofs to make it go faster. When he arrived there he noticed a small note left for him, taped to the door. He tensed for a moment, wondering if it was a trap, before he read it.  
  
'Naruto and Sasuke, go to Sakura's house.' He shrugged to himself, looking into the building to find it entirely empty. He sighed and turned towards his girlfriend's house, wondering what the problem was.  
  
"I wonder if Sasuke not being there is going to be a big deal." He wondered aloud to himself when he got to her door. The lights were all out and, as he walked up to the door, he could hear frantic scuffling. He knocked twice and half a dozen people called for him to come in, followed by half a dozen curses and one yelp of pain that sounded quite a bit like Shikamaru, which was silenced by a hiss of the boy's name from Ino.  
  
Naruto smirked to himself and opened the door. Everyone was supposed to be hidden in the darkness, but there were people passed out on the carpet for it to be successful. They jumped up from their hiding places anyways and yelled "SURPRISE!!" He noticed Shikamaru stand up and shoot Ino a glare, while rubbing the back of his head where she must have smacked him. He looked a little unsteady on his feet.  
  
"Where's Sasuke?" Ino asked, ignoring the look she was getting from her team mate. Naruto offered a shrug.  
  
"He went home, tired." He walked up to the couple and gave Shikamaru a wary glance. "Is he drunk?" He asked, slightly bewildered. Ino nodded sadly.  
  
"Kiba spiked the punch... a lot. I think there's more alcohol in that stuff than punch. This party was supposed to be a partial celebration of your return, but also cause we need a little fun. Do you have a report for him?" Naruto nodded and pulled out the scroll.  
  
"Can you keep this safe for him until he reaches hangover stage?" She smiled and nodded, slipping the roll of paper into her purse and dragged the boy away.  
  
"Wait, Ino!" The blonde girl turned around. "Have you seen Sakura anywhere?"  
  
"Gomen, no, but I did see her around Lee a lot."  
  
"I saw where she went!" Kiba exclaimed, mischievously. Naruto turned around to see twin evil smirks on the boy and his dog. He was also surprised to see that Kiba had avoided the punch.  
  
"You're not drunk?"  
  
"Nope, but its funny watching all these people get themselves drunk." He chuckled to himself. "Sakura and Lee went upstairs a while ago. You know, it was so weird, cause she was fawning all over him calling him Sasuke." Naruto frowned, wondering briefly if the kunoichi had gotten herself drunk too. There was no other way she'd mistake Lee for Sasuke. "She's been doing it all night." Naruto nodded, totally caught off guard when the boy dropped to the ground in front of him. Maybe he'd had a little more than he'd thought. The blonde smirked and headed upstairs.  
  
From the landing he could see that the drunkenness was widespread. Everyone from Iruka and Kakashi to Shino and Ebisu seemed to be sharing a glass (or two... or four) of the punch. He turned to Sakura's bedroom door, assuming that that was where she'd brought Lee and knocked softly. No answer.  
  
He opened the door a crack and peeked inside, gasping in horror at the sight before him. Tangled in the bed sheets were Lee and Sakura, entirely devoid of clothing. Indeed, the articles were thrown all over the place, as were their limbs. He took in a shuddering breath attracting the attention of Lee, who sat up, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.  
  
"Sasuke." Sakura mumbled, clinging tighter to the boy's waist.  
  
"Naruto." Lee said softly, shaking the girl awake. He could clearly see the betrayal written on the boy's face. The tears were on the brink of spilling. Sakura lifted her head to look wearily at the boy standing dumbstruck in the doorway.  
  
"Naruto?" She asked blinking slowly, before realization set in and she gasped. "Naruto!" She exclaimed and turned to the boy in her bed only slightly less surprised to see him than Naruto. "LEE! I thought you were..." she trailed off, looking down at her hands folded in her lap. She at least had the grace to look ashamed.  
  
"You thought he was Sasuke because you're still in love with that stupid bastard." Naruto bit out furiously. "You can't blame the alcohol, it only lowers your inhibitions... which means you were willing to whore yourself off to Uchiha more than you were willing to kiss me." He snarled, his eyes flashing red before he ran down the stairs. He ignored all the people who'd heard the exchange and tried to call him back. He didn't care to hear what they were saying; all he wanted to do was get out of there. He pushed past Kakashi and Iruka and ran out the front door.  
  
"Naruto, no!!" She cried after him, running out into the hallway, wrapped in a bed sheet, but he had gone. Kakashi looked up at her appearance above everyone and shook his head sadly. He had warned her about breaking Naruto's heart. He pulled Iruka from the crowd, and away from anymore alcohol.  
  
"Stupid little girl." He muttered.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah, short chapter, but it did all it needed to. Plus, I only posted the previous one yesterday. Poor Naruto. I really wanted to bash Sakura's head in when I first came up with this idea. Of course, now I just feel really sorry for her.  
  
Yay for Kakashi and Iruka-ness. 


	32. Consequences

I think I got a laugh out of Dark Mimiru-chan's review the most. I'm glad you don't feel sorry for Sakura. I don't like what she did... but then again, I do feel sorry for the way she's treated afterwards...  
  
I know I haven't said much more about the room, but Naruto's hidden room is actually very important to who he is.  
  
I was talking about the manga chapters when I said chapter 210 raw cause the anime hasn't even come close to that many episodes yet, just in case you aren't caught up to either forms of the series(manga or anime). They haven't even come close to that number.  
  
Chapter Title: 32: Consequences  
  
As soon as the wooden door opened, the attacker had the poor boy on the floor, a flurry of fists and teeth flying everywhere. Sasuke was completely overwhelmed, and confused as hell. He'd come running at the frantic pounding, only to be pounced upon by some orange and blonde blur. He hissed in pain as a toe connected with his shin and he tried to scrabble away from the hysterical boy to figure out what was going on. Naruto was yelling all sorts of nonsense and he was about to let his Sharingan go and fight back when he saw tears beginning to fall.  
  
"Why do you have to have everything?" Naruto whispered when he was finally too tired to fight any longer. "You've already got everything I want. Attention, admiration, potential, respect, family, people who love you. And you don't even give a shit about any of it. You're nothing but a selfish arrogant bastard." He spat bitterly.  
  
"I never asked for any of that." Sasuke tried defending himself. "And what family do I supposedly have? My brother took away any family I had."  
  
"Well at least you have good memories with them. I don't even have that. No one will tell me anything about my parents, or even if they existed at all. I've got nothing. You've been forgiven for betraying the village when you were twelve, but I'm still ostracized for something someone else did in a past life. I wasn't even born. And yet Golden Boy Uchiha is forgiven for something he did on purpose."  
  
"It doesn't seem to me that you've forgiven me." Sasuke said. Naruto laughed pathetically.  
  
"That's the thing. I have. Why do you have to take everything from me?" He asked softly. "Especially Sakura."  
  
"I never went anywhere near her." Sasuke exclaimed. "What the hell is going on? I thought you were happy with her."  
  
"I was."  
  
He seemed to find another burst of energy at the reminder of his long-time crush and leapt at the dark-haired genin growling. "She cheated on me." He yelled, trying to attack as many vital points as he could.  
  
"And how would that involve me?!" Sasuke shouted back, trying to avoid the slightly sharper than usual nails. "If you'd forgotten, I was with you this whole time."  
  
"Not with you, with Lee." Sasuke had to fight off a snort.  
  
"Rock Lee? And again, I ask how the hell that would involve me?"  
  
"She was drunk... she thought she was sleeping with you." Sasuke allowed himself to be pinned to the floor. "She didn't even think of me."  
  
"So?" Sasuke asked. "That just means you never had her in the first place. I know it may hurt to hear this, but at least you know she didn't betray you. How could she betray someone who she was never loyal to in the first place?" He couldn't understand why he was defending the spoiled girl when he wanted nothing more than to turn his Chidori on her. Naruto winced at his words and raised a fist to punch the boy trapped beneath him.  
  
"Fight back." He demanded through gritted teeth, ignoring the echoing sting that pierced through him.  
  
"No. I've had enough of your temper. You've been like this since you started dating Sakura." The poised fist came down suddenly, but instead of hitting flesh, it slammed violently into the floorboards just beside the Uchiha's head.  
  
"Why've you been so volatile towards me?" Sasuke asked, not flinching a bit.  
  
"I don't know. It just happened. Things never seemed to feel right if I wasn't fighting with you. So I guess I forced it. Sakura was never supposed to say yes to me. I was supposed to yearn for her forever." He hesitated, taking a shaky breath, keeping Sasuke's body still beneath him.  
  
"Fighting with you was something that felt normal. I enjoyed it so much because it took my mind off of all the questions I had. Like why she suddenly decided to give up on you and date me. I didn't want to answer that." Sasuke could feel the body above him lose its previous tension and relax.  
  
"You're not really angry about Sakura are you?" He wondered aloud. The blonde looked into his eyes startled and pondered the answer.  
  
"I'm humiliated that she led me on for so long. I'm pissed beyond words that I keep losing to someone like you; that you keep getting in the way of my dreams. But no, I'm not angry that she slept with someone else. Now that I had the chance to be with her as her boyfriend, I don't think I ever liked her as anything more than a friend. But how'd you know?" Sasuke smirked.  
  
"I can read minds, dobe." He snorted sarcastically. "We're supposed to be best friends or something, right? I can read you like a book." The blond frowned at this but was too worn out to argue.  
  
"What ever you say, Sasuke-chan. Can I sleep over tonight?"  
  
"Sure." They both stood up slowly. Sasuke was about to lead Naruto to his bedroom when he felt a halting hand on his shoulders.  
  
"Could you tell Sakura I'm not mad at her?" The fox-boy asked timidly, not meeting Sasuke's gaze when the boy looked over his shoulder. "I don't think I can face her for a couple of days. The whole lowered inhibitions makes it obvious she's still attached to you, so I guess it makes it easier for us to break up." Sasuke nodded, surprised when his rival collapsed into his arms, passed out from over exertion. A ghost of a smile flitted across his face and he carried the boy to his room and tucked him underneath the warm midnight blue sheets.  
  
"I'll tell her in the morning, Kitsune." He whispered softly, wondering if he'd finally gotten the fighting out of his system. If he'd finally gotten Sakura out of his system.  
  
***  
  
In the morning, the sun was shining brightly, the sky was nearly cloudless (much to Shikamaru's chagrin) and nearly the entire village was suffering from a massive hangover from the previous night's activities, but still someone found it in themselves to drag their ass to Sasuke's front door step, knocking loud enough to be heard for blocks.  
  
He pulled open the door, only mildly surprised to see Sakura at his doorstep. She smiled brightly at him, making it instantly obvious she didn't want him knowing about what she'd done.  
  
"Ohayou Sasuke-kun." She greeted him with mock cheerfulness. "Have you seen Naruto? We had a... ano... an argument and I'd like to talk with him, but I can't find him anywhere." She flashed him a smile which he returned with a sharp piercing glare.  
  
"I already know what happened last night. You make me sick." He spat, repeating those words to her for the third time since he'd known her. "You should be ashamed of yourself."  
  
"I am, Sasuke-kun." She laughed nervously, trying not to lose her cool. "Kakashi-sensei gave me the same lecture. I only want to smooth things out with Naruto."  
  
"And you think that one chat will be enough to 'smooth things out'?" He hissed, eyes narrowing slightly. He'd be lucky if he managed to keep his anger low enough not to spark the curse seal that was still present on the back of his neck. "If Kakashi already gave you this lecture then it obviously didn't sink in the first time. But don't worry your pretty little conscience. Naruto gave me a message for you. He's okay. He doesn't feel jilted or betrayed and knew all along that he never liked you. So don't feel too bad about it. That's what Naruto told me to tell you, basically." He paused and she smiled in relief.  
  
"It's good to know that I haven't totally messed things up permanently." She sighed. "I would hate to lose you two." His eyes narrowed to slits and he continued, unheeding of what she'd just said.  
  
"I on the other hand think you're a horrible person to have led Naruto on for so long like that when it was obvious to everyone but him that you had no romantic intentions towards him. You might have been forgiven easily by Naruto but I'm a different story. I will never forgive you for what you did to him." She looked saddened for a moment, but she nodded in understanding. Even she had to know there was no forgiveness from the avenger. Naruto was just too nice to her. Always had been.  
  
"Is he there?" She asked softly after reflecting for a moment. Sasuke nodded sharply, his intense dislike for the girl clear in his body language.  
  
"He's sleeping." She smiled serenely at the protective undertones in his voice.  
  
"I'm not surprised he came to you first." She said. "You two are like best friends. Maybe even closer than that. He'd follow you to the ends of the earth without so much as a questioning glance backwards."  
  
"That's not true. He has dreams he has to fulfill and you should know well enough that I'm nothing more than a rival to him." She frowned for a moment, before remembering something the blonde had told her a couple of years ago.  
  
"Do you remember when we were in the forest and we met that old woman who refused to let Naruto into her hut because he was the Kitsune?" He nodded his head, letting her continue, uninterrupted. "And do you remember how I was sent to get him because I was the one he was most likely to listen to..." He nodded again, wondering what she was getting at. "Well we had a talk and he told me that one day I'd have to tell you that you would have had an easier time persuading him to return. Much easier than me. He told me so himself. That he would have rather you came after him when he ran off into the forest."  
  
"He doesn't need me and I don't need him." Sasuke replied stubbornly, still tense from her mere presence.  
  
"He trusts you." She flashed him a genuine smile. "He's your first friend, isn't he? The first person to stay beside you for so long."  
  
"He's my only friend." She nodded and bowed, stepping back.  
  
"I realise I may never be able to win back your trust or your forgiveness, but tell Naruto I said I was sorry." She turned and left.  
  
"You don't deserve him." He muttered under his breath, watching the girl leave. When he closed the door and turned around, he nearly had a heart attack, finding Naruto standing behind him.  
  
"How long have you been behind me?" He asked, a little peeved at being caught so off guard.  
  
"Long enough." The blonde boy grinned and Sasuke knew he'd heard the last part. He was lucky enough that he didn't blush at that knowledge. "Thank you for standing up for me to her. I didn't have it in me to face her so soon. I really appreciate it, but you didn't have to go and tell her you hated her for hurting me."  
  
"But I do." Sasuke replied simply. Naruto laughed nervously before realising he was serious.  
  
"Really?" He nodded.  
  
"You're probably the only person I've allowed myself to become friends with, and I'm not going to give that up just to please some girl."  
  
"But that girl may be the future of your clan."  
  
"I'll find a way around it."  
  
Naruto smiled broadly, catching Sasuke off guard. He sorely wished he had a camera. Never before had he seen such a true smile from the hyper ninja. They were always fakes, but this one was the biggest and truest smile he could have imagined. Smiling softly to himself he walked the boy to the kitchen as he began to complain of hunger and realised he didn't need a camera. He'd remember that moment for the rest of his life and he was happy.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
I can't believe I did that. Crap. Yet another fusion chapter. I can't believe I've been writing such small pathetic chapter notes. This one took the plans for both chapters 33 and 34, meaning that I'm drastically cutting the amount of chapters this will ultimately have. Even though I'm not even close to being done... I haven't written up chapter notes in a good couple of months and I'm quickly catching up to myself.  
  
One thing to note... The whole SakuNaru 'arc' is now over... and there's only one more chapter I think until I begin the next arc, which deals with the Kyuubi again. The last chapter of this lil arc is a little filler I suppose you could call it. If I had my way I'd call it  
  
"Morning After: Kakashi and Iruka style"  
  
*grins* I'm sure you all can figure out what that implies. Who knows... I may just end up calling it that. KakaIru fans prepare to get your emotions thrown in an emotional blender.  
  
Ja mata 


	33. Morning After: Kakashi and Iruka Style

OMG NUUUU!!! I'm not finished with the SasuNaru just because I feel the KakaIru side has been a smidge neglected. Of course... I really don't believe in this pairing at all... I don't hate them, it's just that I don't see it AT ALL!! There's no KakaIru interaction except for the argument they had over whether Sasuke Naruto and Sakura were ready for the exams. THAT'S IT!!! So, if you know how I am personally with pairings I really don't see happening... you'll know what the future of them might be.  
  
Of course... just because I can see NejiNaru and ShikaNaru... doesn't mean they'll last against my NaruSasu. Yush... still NaruSasu.  
  
I couldn't help myself... I had to use the title.  
  
Chapter Title: 33. Morning After: Kakashi and Iruka Style  
  
Kakashi sighed, fingering the tiny embroidery thread that lined his sheets, absentmindedly. He'd made a big mistake last night. He told himself he shouldn't, but it was only for one night, and he think he could stand holding out any longer. He knew he could fix things when Iruka woke up, but for the moment he allowed the worry lines in his forehead mar his features for a little bit longer. He shifted under the sheets, closing his eyes and snuggling closer to the naked warmth that radiated from the body next to his.  
  
Furrowing his eyebrows together as if to keep his eyes from opening, he went over as many details of the previous night as he could, noting that moments were already starting to blur and fuzz around the edges.  
  
He remembered Kiba's alcohol and sighed, knowing Iruka had had at least one cup full while he was watching. Between there and the place he was now didn't interest him as much as remembering what happened between the now sticky and sweaty linen sheets he was sleeping in.  
  
He could recall most of the event in a jumbled haze of lust and passion as he'd removed Iruka's clothing almost feverously. Any coherent thoughts or protests he may have had were thrown out the window as Iruka showered him with kisses and promised him the world. None of it set in and none of it mattered, except for Kakashi's awareness of his final loss of control. He gave his body to Iruka. His body, his mind and his soul in that one night of passion, and reflecting back on it he prayed n one ever find out about it else they be dead faster than either of them could say 'Shinobi'.  
  
Sighing again, Kakashi couldn't stop his whirlwind of thoughts that blared out every single warning they could think of to tell him to leave immediately. To abandon the warmth. He hesitated for a second, glancing up at the peaceful face of the man he was lying next to and he closed his eyes in pain. He didn't want to do this. Iruka had to understand.  
  
Sitting up, Kakashi pulled back the covers slightly and slipped his arm from Iruka's waist. He climbed out of the bed, picking his clothes up. He was intent on getting dressed and leaving before they could talk about it, but the sudden chill and the shifting of the mattress awoke the sleeping academy teacher.  
  
Blinking slowly to adjust to the light, Iruka sat up in the bed, frowning at the January chill. He looked up to Kakashi, who was pulling on a pair of boxers and his face mask, and blushed faintly.  
  
"Ohayou, Kakashi." He whispered, sounding only slightly put off when Kakashi nodded back to him briefly and continued to pick up his scattered clothing. "Don't go home just yet."  
  
"Do you know what we just did?" The silver-haired jounin asked bluntly. Iruka looked up, blushing deeper and Kakashi knew he could see the panic in his eyes. The chuunin frowned sullenly.  
  
"Are you... disgusted by me?" He asked softly, lowering his eyes and avoiding the question. "By what we did?"  
  
"No."  
  
"Do you regret it then?" There was another hesitation in answering and Iruka looked up.  
  
"Maybe." Kakashi whispered almost inaudibly.  
  
"Did you think I was someone else? Is that why you slept with me?" Kakashi was torn to hear the pain in the younger man's voice as he strained to retain his last shred of dignity.  
  
"No!" He protested. "But I never wanted to do this with you."  
  
"Did you want to take it slower?"  
  
"Yes. So slow it isn't happening, Iruka." The jounin turned to leave, not intending to say anything more to betray his fears, but Iruka jumped from the bed and blocked his exit.  
  
"I'm sick and tired of constantly chasing after you Kakashi-san." He growled, holding his arms up to bar the older man's escape. "I want to know what the hell is going on inside of your head. It's obvious you want me. I can see it by your body's betrayal." He nodded down to where Kakashi's boxers were starting to become a little too tight for him. "I just don't understand why you are holding back so much for so long. It's frustrating and I want the truth, right now." He stepped closer, intent on making the silver-haired jounin uncomfortable. "You're not leaving until you tell me."  
  
Kakashi sighed and took a step backwards to regain his comfort zone. He remembered a long time ago a little speech he'd given to Naruto. He'd said to the young boy "You have to confront the subject of your fears, but only do it when you're ready. Or only when you get caught." It seemed as though his option was the latter one. He'd been caught, but even so, he still found himself reluctant to admit it even to *himself*, much less Iruka.  
  
"I can't do this." He exclaimed. "So stop trying. While I may enjoy being with you, there's no deeper meaning to it. You need to stop trying to get me to settle down, cause to me it's not an emotional thing, but a physical urge... to be satisfied." He hesitated, knowing how much Iruka was hearting because he could feel the stabbing pain himself with every word that spilled from his cloth covered lips.  
  
"There may come a time when you'll thank me for not tying you down to a meaningless short fling. Stop trying to change me, it won't work."  
  
Kakashi almost expected Iruka to start crying, but he was surprised with a new bout of anger shoved in his face.  
  
"I don't care about years from now or even days from now." He narrowed his eyes. "I don't want it to mean something pointless to you when it means so much to me." He stepped aside. "If you leave now, it will be the same as saying you don't care about any of that or me."  
  
"Iruka..." Kakashi protested, not moving. The dark-haired man grinned broadly.  
  
"I thought so." Snorting, Kakashi walked towards the door anyways. Iruka's grin of victory quickly became a frown.  
  
"I DON'T care." And with the slam of the door, Kakashi was gone. The chuunin was left to stand in the doorway, staring at the panel of wood, dumbstruck at the man's boldness. Sighing to himself, he jumped back under the covers relishing in the last remnants of Kakashi's warmth and releasing himself to the memories of the previous night, not willing to let the present sink in too deeply.  
  
He remembered frantic caresses that were too soft for someone who didn't care. He remembered kissed traced along his jaw and down to his hipbone that were too gentle for someone who didn't care. And he remembered that Kakashi had had absolutely no alcohol that night and yet he still whispered in the tenderest voice for someone who didn't care 'You're too drunk to remember this in the morning, but I DO care'. He frowned deeply, now more confused and not knowing which version to believe; the Kakashi that thought with his head or his heart.  
  
***  
  
Sakura was having a hard time letting reality sink in. She'd asked herself over and over again how she could have let such a stupid thing happen, until her head started spinning from all the stress. After wandering the village, avoiding everyone who went to the party, she returned home, deciding to clean up her house before her parents came home in a couple of days.  
  
She pushed open the door and was surprised to find Lee bending over a couch to pick up some of the garbage that had been shoved there. He heard the tell-tale creaking of the door and turned around, a cautious smile on his face. She frowned, remembering the harsh words Sasuke had said to her earlier, tears stinging her eyes. She hated him passing judgement on her. She focused her eyes on Lee and saw a look of worry pass over his features and she found herself suddenly angry at him.  
  
"Why are you still here?" She asked loudly, her voice a lot harsher than she intended, but once she got started it was hard for her to stop. "Why didn't you leave last night?!"  
  
Absorbing her words, he stood up straight knowing that she needed to get it out of her system. Picking up a nearby glass, she threw it at him, but he snatched it from the air with his regained reflexes. She became even more frustrated, throwing anything she could get her hands on at him, until it all just exploded in her face and she sank down into a chair sobbing. That was when Lee thought it was safe to go nearer. He crouched down in front of her, placing a warm hand on her knee.  
  
"What are you so upset about, Sakura-chan?" He asked. "Is it what we did last night?"  
  
"No, it's Naruto and Sasuke." She sniffed through her hands that were hiding her tears. "Naruto went to him last night. Sasuke-kun knows everything and now he hates me even more than he used to. Now I'll never get him to fall in love with me." Lee winced at the last sentence, but didn't let her see it.  
  
"You shouldn't have led Naruto on like that when you still had feelings for Sasuke." He said in a soft voice, quite unlike the jovial act he put on for everyone else. "That's probably the only reason he is so angry with you, because it seemed as though you betrayed Naruto. He may eventually forgive you." He tried injecting his words of comfort with a little hope but she shook her head.  
  
"Maybe, but he'll never return my feelings because of this."  
  
"I really hate to say this, but I doubt he will either, but I don't think that has anything to do with the way you treated Naruto. He's never shown you anything but respect and a tiny amount of friendship. You are just too blind to see him for who he truly is. Or have you forgotten all the time you spent watching his every move when he was brought back from Orochimaru's village?"  
  
"He told me that if he had wanted to, he would have been gone without anyone ever knowing." She whispered through her hands, slowly raising her head and pushing her pink hair out of her face. He nodded, a small smile on his face.  
  
"Do you want to go out for a walk?" He asked, waving a hand to indicate the house. "I'm just about done here, and I think we both could use a little fresh air."  
  
Sakura hesitated for a second, wanting to do nothing more than curl up under her covers and sleep until the end of eternity, but there was something that shone in Rock Lee's eyes, looking something like hope. It gave her the courage to take his offered hand and walk outside.  
  
They'd been walking for a little bit, when they passed a park and saw Naruto walking towards them. Sakura leapt forwards, while Lee balked, wondering if the blond boy was prone to lash out. He could still remember some of Naruto's earlier battles and a lot of people told him stories about how he faired against Neji, battling for Hinata's honour.  
  
"Naruto!" Sakura called out, ignorant of the sudden stiffness in the boy's posture when he heard and recognised her voice. He looked up and panic flashed across his features. He was still wearing the clothes he'd returned home wearing as he hadn't been home yet. He nodded briefly, not entirely sure what he could say.  
  
"Ohayo, Naruto-kun." Lee spoke up when it was obvious neither of them had plans to start a conversation. "I apologise if seeing me naked has ruined my enigmatic mysterious suave nature." Naruto forced a grin at the joke, but it was obvious he was uncomfortable at the obvious false airs they were all putting up.  
  
"More like ruined my good dreams and gave me nightmares." He chuckled nervously. "At least it explained why you're called the Azure Beast. All that hair on your back." Lee smiled despite the tension that crackled in the air. "Sumimasen, but I have things I need to get back to. I have to prepare for my next mission." The blonde chuunin mumbled hurriedly before pushing past Sakura and Lee. It was then that Lee realised that the entire time, Naruto had avoided looking at Sakura entirely. He frowned, wondering if things would ever get better. He knew better than to wish for the impossible; things would NEVER be the same.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Heh... heh... And on to another arc we go. Trust me... because I'm enjoying this story, I'm getting out the chapters fairly quickly, and if you think that just because I've managed to jump the Sakura obstacle this time that now Sasuke and Naruto are going to fall madly in love and screw like bunnies. No. I'm keeping the pace of this story as realistic as it should be; I am an author after all... I'm not going to ruin my story just to get them into bed... if you wanted that then you should go to another fic. This is not a PWP. It will never be one.  
  
Please stop asking me to hurry with certain things (like the yaoi, or the chapters). It will not make me do anything any faster. I actually enjoy reading reviews that take some time and effort... or are a little long. ^-^ 


	34. Mother Dearest

BIG THANK YOU to Watermelon Gal... my 400th reviewer... my god... four hundred?! *has a heart attack*  
  
To Dark Mimiru-chan... lmao... I could barely get past that first sentence, I was laughing so hard. Yes, I want Naruto to be Sasuke's bitch... but I also like the idea of Sasuke being Naruto's bitch... *grins* Of course... if I had the chance, I'd be Naruto's bitch any day... lol... I'm still upset with Sasuke right now. (*Cheers for the Drunken Fist*)  
  
Thank you for the review Ookima, and don't worry. There's more broken Naruto in this chapter, and he ends up making the biggest mistake of his life just to get away from Sakura.  
  
Chapter Title: 34. Mother Dearest  
  
It had been a couple of weeks and still the tension was thick between Sakura and her other two team mates. Sasuke had been ignoring her altogether, but he would always have at least one eye watching her every move when ever she came within a few feet of his rival. Naruto, on the other hand, tried to keep going on as though nothing had happened and everything was normal, ignoring the strain that the break up had caused, rather than the girl herself. He didn't blame her, but try as he might, he couldn't get around the fact that things wouldn't be the same and internally he felt it was somehow his own fault.  
  
Kakashi was taking them to the Hokage tower to see what sort of mission he could get out of Tsunade, muttering under his breath as he walked ahead of the trio who refused to stand near each other.  
  
"This is yet another good reason why I shouldn't get involved with my colleagues." He told himself, suddenly stopping them all outside the front door.  
  
"There is no point in us going any further if you three can't work together." He told them sternly.  
  
"We can work together just fine." Sasuke growled under his breath. "We proved that the first day you met us. There's no rule that our team all have to be friends with each other."  
  
"Good point." He smirked inwardly at the boy's sharp tongue and led them down the hallways to the main office where Tsunade was just emerging. I her office they just barely caught a glimpse of a woman in a blood red kimono with shock white hair before the Hokage closed the door behind her.  
  
"What a coincidence." She muttered bitterly to herself before putting on a smile for the team. "I was actually just going to come looking for you four... well actually Naruto specifically. Please stay out here." She told the others while pulling Naruto back into the room with her. If it hadn't been for Kakashi ordering them to wait in the waiting room and stay seated on the bench, they would have had their ears pressed to the door like little children. They weren't too far from the room as it was, but they could only vaguely hear voices and nothing clear enough.  
  
Some noise from around a corner began to interfere with the noises coming from the office and the academy class rounded it, with Iruka. He was leading a tour for the younger generation of Shinobi.  
  
An icy look passed between Kakashi and Iruka, but nothing was said. Though they had nothing more to go on, Sasuke and Sakura turned to each other mutually confused. They could feel the electricity between the jounin and the chuunin prickling their skin.  
  
Then, as soon as the class appeared, they disappeared down the other side of the hallway as if nothing had ever happened, though with Sasuke's sharp eyes, he noticed the slight slouch and general dark cloud that hung right over his sensei's head. They were able to pick up the talking from the other side of the closed door again.  
  
***  
  
Inside the room, Naruto was able to get a better look at the ethereal woman. She had hip-length white hair, clipped together in the front and an exquisitely detailed crimson kimono that seemed to flow around her. He turned his gaze from her and back to Tsunade, who had returned to behind her desk.  
  
"How have things been lately, Naruto-kun?" he was asked. He was still slightly unnerved by the stiff and silent woman beside him, but decided to ignore her for the time being.  
  
"Not good, Tsunade-sama." He whispered, wondering how formal he should be. "I would like to request a number of solo missions."  
  
"I've heard about what happened to end your relationship with Haruno-san." Tsunade eluded his request for a moment. "How are you dealing with that?"  
  
"We've come to an understanding and talk occasionally." It wasn't a direct lie.  
  
"I don't think it's quite that easy. You must me very uncomfortable around her and Rock Lee in order to request missions that would separate you from them. Why are you running away from your problems?" Naruto narrowed his eyes dangerously.  
  
"I'm not running away." He spat. "I just enjoyed being on my own."  
  
"And yet when I assigned you that mission with Sasuke you wanted nothing more than to stay behind with your Sakura-chan."  
  
"I didn't say that, Tsunade-baba!" He shot back, wincing when he heard the woman beside him clear her throat. "Gomen, but you deserved it." He muttered in response. The woman laughed softly. It wasn't anything capturing, but it had a quiet melodious feeling to it.  
  
"This woman is here to help you 'run away' from your problems." Tsunade spoke up, standing from her paper cluttered desk, and it was obvious that she wasn't quite fond of the beauty that stood before her. She continued before he could react to her words. "She's your...... mother." Naruto snorted and had to clamp a hand over his mouth to keep from bursting into tears from the announcement. The chuckles were just barely repressed.  
  
"Have you forgotten already that I'm an orphan?" He replied when he found his voice again. "I have no mother."  
  
"She's not Naruto's mother. She's the mother of the Kitsune you hold inside of you." He frowned for a moment, wondering how it was even possible for the beast to have a mother, when he felt a surge of longing forced from the Kitsune into his consciousness, followed by homesickness. "She'd like you to go with her as you are holding the soul of her son, however, it is ultimately your own decision to go with her or not."  
  
"How can she be the Kitsune's mother if she's a human?" He asked, voicing one of many questions clouding his mind.  
  
"Kitsune are known to take these forms to bring misfortune on those that are fooled by their disguises." She replied.  
  
"I took this form so that the people of the village wouldn't be frightened of me." The soft soprano of the woman added, taking no obvious offence to the Hokage's words. "I know I'm not your real mother, but I love my child, and since you are his vessel, I know I can learn to love you as well. I will try to be as good a mother to you as I can be."  
  
Naruto nodded deftly, tears coming to his eyes as he saw a way to get away from the stress the village had been pressuring him with; an escape; a mother. She was his mother, although indirectly. As a tear slid down his cheek, he leapt forward into the arms of the ethereal woman, and hugged her as tightly as he could. Even though she was not really his, he didn't care. He had a family. For once in his life, he had a family.  
  
***  
  
Nearly an hour later, Sakura was sitting on the floor, Kakashi had gone through his Icha Icha Paradaisu book three times, and Sasuke was pacing in front of the door. They'd finally given up listening in on the conversation on the other side, but the peculiarity of the occasional noise that slipped out made them anxious to learn of what was on the other side of the door. The soft click of the opening door brought their attention back to the room, as Naruto came out looking exhausted in every way possible.  
  
"The fifth will give you guys the mission now." He said, not looking up from his feet. The woman followed behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder.  
  
"Please think about my offer; I know you will make the right decision." She whispered, loud enough for his friends to hear. Nodding curtly to the other three she walked down the hall gracefully and disappeared around another corner.  
  
"What the hell did she want?" Sasuke interrupted the silence. Naruto looked up for a second.  
  
"She's my mother and wants me to return home with her."  
  
"But that's stupid, you don't have a mom." Sakura burst out, glaring at the corner the woman passed around. "It must be a trick to lure the demon out of Konoha."  
  
"I know I don't have a mom; she's the Kitsune's mother." They were all startled into silence for a few moments.  
  
"I never knew the Kitsune even had a mother." Sasuke spoke up.  
  
"Me neither, but apparently he does." Naruto replied. "The Kyuubi wants to leave with her-"  
  
"But that's too dangerous!" Sasuke interrupted. "We can't let him out of the village like that."  
  
"She also wants ME as her son. The Kyuubi has no body. I am it's body, and therefore I am her son. Don't you understand, Sasuke. For the first time in my life I might have something of a family. Don't you dare try and take this away from me. You at least had one for a short amount of time." He narrowed his eyes at his rival. "I'm going home. I need some time to think this over, before I give her an answer." He turned his back on his team mates and walked away. Kakashi stepped up and placed a hand in front of Sasuke's chest to stop him from going after the boy.  
  
"He needs time. Let him make his own mistakes."  
  
***  
  
They hadn't been into their mission thirty minutes when Kakashi dismissed Sasuke from his duty.  
  
"I'm fine, Kakashi-sensei." He protested, but the truth was his mind was totally preoccupied with thoughts of the blonde haired ninja.  
  
"Go talk with him. Convince him to stay, if it will help you focus." The jounin nodded understandingly. Sakura came up to them and was about to run after the boy but Kakashi held her back.  
  
"Let them sort this out on their own." She frowned at him, but stayed behind to finish up their gardening mission.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke went straight to Naruto's apartment, only to find the boy packing away all of his things.  
  
"Naruto, stop." He commanded, grabbing his rival by the wrists to stop him from folding another shirt. Flinching in surprise, the boy turned his head slowly, a sad smile on his face.  
  
"You're missing the bigger picture. You've had something I've always longed for. A mother. Now I have a chance to have one."  
  
"She's not your mother."  
  
"That may be true, but she's willing to treat me as her own. It's better than nothing." Failing to think of an argument to counter this, Sasuke frowned.  
  
"Stop." He repeated. "Don't go. What about becoming Hokage?" He was grabbing at anything he could use to keep his friend in the village.  
  
"I can always come back. This isn't a permanent decision." But this wasn't enough for Sasuke. He didn't believe those words.  
  
"You're just being a coward." He spat. "You're running away with your tail between your legs."  
  
"Why do you care so much?" Naruto retorted, becoming angry himself.  
  
"Because I don't want you to leave me." Sasuke whispered. "I want you to stay."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Well then. That was originally supposed to be two separate chapters. It's amazing how short it is when you type them all up. I think I'm going to have to combine a lot of chapters in the future... yuck. Who knows... the next one may end up being three chapters combined. 


	35. Going, Going, Gone

I know a lot of you didn't like the idea of Naruto leaving. But too bad for you. It would end way too soon if he stayed... not to mention it would actually make the shounen ai stuffs have to wait for another ten or so chapters before I could get to it. Think of it as me speeding up the process. Hee hee... hurting my baby Naruto-kun is just a bonus... honest! *crosses fingers behind back*  
  
Chapter Title: 35. Going, Going, Gone  
  
Both boys flushed at the implications Sasuke's words brought, before Sasuke remembered to explain himself.  
  
"T-that didn't come out right." He stuttered quickly, trying to fix his words. "I don't want to see you getting yourself hurt-" Naruto held up a hand to silence him.  
  
"It came out exactly how it was meant." He replied. "You're afraid that I'm going to become evil like you did the last time you were offered a chance out of this place."  
  
"No, that's not it!"  
  
"Of course that's it. You think that I'm like you. That I would turn on my village." Sasuke continued to shake his head in denial. "No? Either that or you think that when I leave you, I'll become even stronger. Leave you behind."  
  
"Naruto, stop putting words into my mouth." The blonde continued packing as though he'd never heard his rival's pleading.  
  
"I'm not turning on Konoha, and I'm not leaving to gain power, like you did. I'm creating an alliance. I'm getting a mom. You take it for granted that you actually had a mom." He hesitated, not seeing the look of frustration on Sasuke's face. He might not have cared even if he had seen it. "I'm taking a break from the tensions of this war. I'm getting a LIFE! You're just jealous that I now have a mother and the only family you're left with is Itachi!" As soon as the words left his mouth, he knew he shouldn't have said it, and he knew it would rile up Sasuke more than anything else he could ever have said, but he was already so angry and didn't care who else got hurt.  
  
"You think you can get away from your problems." Sasuke hissed under his breath. "But you're nothing special. You'll always be a demon. You'll always be the demon to just about everyone in this village. To that woman in the hut. But to me... you'll always be that stupid little idiot. I don't want you to leave... me, because I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't brought me back from Orochimaru. I've talked to a lot of people since then. Everyone says that only you could have brought me back. Lee told me. Neji told me. Even Shikamaru told me that. Chouji believed in you. Hell... even Sakura thought you were the only one who could save me."  
  
"So?! What is that supposed to mean?!" Naruto retorted, not liking the fact that Sasuke was slowly changing his mind. He turned his head, slightly so that he could watch the other boy's reaction from the corner of his eye. "You don't need me to save you again!"  
  
"No, you're right. Right now I don't. But you promised me you'd help me train to fight against my brother. Don't you remember when Orochimaru was killed? Shinyuu, don't go." Naruto turned to look at Sasuke fully, hearing the words repeated. He frowned knowing if he didn't leave now he would never leave. He quickly performed Kage bunshin, and his clones slowly surrounded the Uchiha.  
  
"I'm sorry, Sasuke." Said one Naruto as they circled him independantly.  
  
"You should stop being so selfish."  
  
"I need to do this."  
  
"I'll be back before you know it."  
  
"I'll never stray far."  
  
"Don't worry."  
  
"I promise you I'll come back." Sasuke whipped his head around, not sure which one was the real Naruto.  
  
"But I don't want to lose you!" He yelled at them all. "I don't want you to lose yourself, either!!!" In a puff of smoke all but one disappeared. Naruto looked guiltily at his feet before looking Sasuke straight in the eyes.  
  
"You already have." He whispered before disappearing himself. Naruto had used Sasuke's confusion to escape through the window.  
  
***  
  
They walked for a few hours after sundown, the time Naruto was told to meet up with the woman, before setting up a small camp in a clearing. Naruto lay back on his sleeping bag and stared up at the cloudless night sky that still held a tinge of faded violet, allowing himself some time to think. He'd met up with the Kitsune's mother at the gates and was surprised to find her in the presence of a masked shinobi. Now, of course, he didn't think much of it, assuming the man to be her bodyguard, but he was a little unnerved at the introduction. He said nothing, just acknowledging his presence with a slight nod of his head.  
  
"I'm not used to being a human mother, Naruto-kun." The woman spoke up, moving to sit beside his bag. "I'll try my hardest. What about your life? Tell me something about you. Something I missed about my child's new life. I'd like to earn your trust."  
  
"I've been by myself for a while."  
  
"From what I've heard that's a very large understatement."  
  
"Yeah, I was an orphan from the moment I was born. But I've done alright for myself."  
  
"What about the Kyuubi?" She asked, curiosity shining in her eyes. He shrugged, wondering what she wanted to know.  
  
"He comes out every so often, when I need his help, or when I'm very angry." He lifted up his shirt and concentrated some chakra at his feet to show her the seal.  
  
"Is that?" She hesitated, tracing an elegant fingernail along the design. He nodded. "It's remarkable, that something so small and insignificant could contain such a great and magnificent power like the Kyuubi's."  
  
"Yeah." He exclaimed softly, feeling more than a little awkward. He looked up to see the bodyguard's red eyes trained on him steadily through the mask, but he couldn't see much else of the man, and it was starting to give him shivers. His mother noticed the stare and smiled gently.  
  
"Don't mind him." She whispered. "He's always like this. You just go to sleep and we'll continue walking in the morning." Naruto nodded and closed his eyes wondering briefly why he felt so confused about his choice to leave Konoha, but he decided it must have been something to do with the look on Sasuke's face when he disappeared. He never liked hurting people that he cared about.  
  
***  
  
"May I, please?" She asked. Naruto was reluctant to give in to his mother's pleas. It didn't feel right to allow what she was asking for, but he couldn't turn her down. This was her child she was asking for after all.  
  
"I don't like the idea of giving up control of my body to the Kitsune." He voiced his doubts. She nodded in understanding.  
  
"I know it may be a difficult idea, but I really would like to speak with him for a few moments. He is my son after all and I miss him so much." He frowned before nodding and closed his eyes, letting the Kyuubi take over his body, secure in the notion that if he needed to he could still regain control of his body. He would be damned if he was going to let the fox have free reign over his body.  
  
While the Kyuubi and his mother chatted about random things, Naruto allowed his conscious to keep him occupied with musings about Sasuke. He wondered why the boy was so adamant about keeping him in the village.  
  
"Is he paying any attention anymore?" The woman asked, warily. The Kitsune shook his head.  
  
"No." She nodded.  
  
"It's nice to finally see you. I've heard a lot of stories about all the trouble you've caused that landed you in that boy's body. You've made quite a name for yourself."  
  
"Of course." He nodded to the masked bodyguard. "So who is he really?"  
  
"Oh him, I believe you've already met once before, but let me formally introduce you to..."  
  
***  
  
"He's gone." Sasuke spat out. Kakashi shook his head, not in the least bit surprised, and Sakura frowned.  
  
"He didn't even say goodbye to us!" She cried.  
  
"I didn't expect him to." Kakashi spoke up, patting the girl on the back. "I had a feeling he would leave with her, whether she was his mother or not, so long as she claimed it. It was one of the three things Naruto's desired since he was a little kid. Besides Sasuke's acceptance, because you represented the entire village's acceptance of him, he desired, wanted... no he needed love. Someone who would be there to look after and care about him. Either romantically or familial. It was an offer he couldn't refuse."  
  
"But he had us!" Sasuke yelled, not wanting to believe in his teacher's words. He didn't want to believe it was so easy to sway the blonde.  
  
"Do you think what you offered him was enough?" Kakashi narrowed his eyes at the pair. "It was obvious what he was looking for to anyone who had eyes. You two just didn't care enough to look." Sasuke took a step backwards before running away. He couldn't believe Kakashi had been so harsh.  
  
He was angry beyond words. At himself, for not seeing what Kakashi so obviously spotted. At Kakashi, for seeing what Naruto needed and not trying to help. At Sakura, for hurting him so much that he sought love in any place he could get it. And at Naruto for leaving. That, above all else, hurt the most.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah. I hate the ending too. It's so... crappy. I think I lost my little faerie that made the words that come out of my mouth make sense. And if that made any sense to any of you, you need a padded room and a designer straight jacket (looks to closet full of them). They're really quite comfy. 


	36. Blessed Release

Muahahah. Yeah, that's about all I have to say right now. You'll know why when you get half way through it. I'm surprised, though, that no one figured out who the red-eyed man is... I thought that would have been easy. Let's just say you've all seen him... unless you follow Shonen Jump, but he was mentioned in it... during the Haku arc.  
  
Chapter Title: 36. Blessed Release  
  
They continued on, neither talking nor stopping for another few hours. It didn't take too long for Naruto to recognise a few of the landmarks.  
  
"Wait a second." He burst out, stopping the two adults. "Why are we going in the same direction as the Sand Village?" Both his companions looked to each other for a moment.  
  
"I didn't know that." His mother replied, smiling softly. "What a strange coincidence. Are they allies of your village?"  
  
"They might be." He replied, not noticing the subtle change in topic. "We got some reconnaissance information that they might be willing to form an alliance with us in order to defend against other countries."  
  
"Interesting." They continued on in silence until their body guard stopped them both and nodded slightly to his mother.  
  
"Naruto-kun, you've been so great." She exclaimed, smiling sincerely. "I've always thought humans were snivelling little beasts, but you're a lot different. You have so much of my child within you. Would you mind if I spoke with him one more time?" She asked.  
  
"But this is my body now." He replied. He'd allowed the Kitsune to take over twice, and both left him feeling entirely insecure about the whole deal. He knew he couldn't trust the Kitsune, but her face looked so sad and he found he couldn't deny her pleas. "Okay, but just for a few minutes." His consciousness subsided and, instead of the last couple of times, he listened in on their conversation.  
  
"He's suspicious of you." The Kitsune spoke as soon as he was in control. "He's listening as we speak. Her face twisted into an ugly smirk and she snorted in response.  
  
"Well, that's just too bad, now isn't it?" She sneered, leaning in to study the blonde's features carefully. "It's so surprising that for so long this little child managed to hold back such a great beast. Can you hold him down while I perform the seal?" Naruto panicked when he felt his head nod out of his control, but the Kyuubi had been let out too far and now had free reign over the boy's body, enough to force Naruto into submission.  
  
He watched in horror as the woman who claimed to be his... no the Kitsune's mother moved her hands faster than the eye could see in a series of hand seals. If he had been in control of his body, he might have hyperventilated when wave after wave of terror crashed over him.  
  
"Itachi-sama, don't look so grave." She hissed over her shoulder. Her bodyguard didn't move, but kept his red eyes trained on the pair as she worked her chakra into her hands as the last of the seals were performed. "You're about to get everything you ever wished for." She exclaimed with a horrid cackling laugh, as though she really knew what the masked man wanted. She unzipped Naruto's orange jacket and slipped her pale hands up his shirt to rest on his navel where the seal began to glow, red hot, beneath her hands.  
  
He struggled beneath the Kitsune's hold on him, feeling his stomach begin to flutter uneasily and the seal burn excruciatingly right down to his core. He could feel his thoughts beginning to mesh together and he found he couldn't think straight, much less fight off the fox. It didn't take long for him to lose the fight against the Kitsune and allow the brilliant white to swallow him whole with the blessed release from the absolute pain the now ugly woman had put him through.  
  
***  
  
The shockwave was felt throughout most of Sand and all of Konoha. No one was able to anticipate such a tremor, and so most were thrown to the ground like rag dolls. Those who felt it milliseconds before it hit managed to gather their bearings quickly enough to only stagger to their knees roughly. Windows imploded, and the weakest houses collapsed as though they were made of toothpicks. The old-fashioned ryokans didn't even stand a chance against the blast.  
  
Kakashi and the rest of his team was pushed face first into the grass, knocked off their feet roughly. Sakura had to spit out a mouthful of dirt and weeds and Sasuke began cursing under his breath, but they both fell still and silent when they saw the look of shock on Kakashi's face.  
  
"Kuso!" He swore under his breath, standing up quickly and dusting himself off, before taking off at a slow run towards the Hokage offices.  
  
"Matte yo!" Sakura called after him and they both sprinted after their teacher in hopes of catching up. Along the way, vendor's carts had been overturned, vegetables thrown everywhere, and everyone was covered in the dirt from the streets. Nobody seemed to know what had happened, and the village was thrown into chaos for fear that the shockwave may hit again. Sasuke and Sakura continued at their rushed pace until they finally caught up to the silver-haired jounin who had halted in front of the Hokage on top of the roof.  
  
She had her back to the three, but she didn't look as majestic as her title suggested. Instead, she was on her knees, leaning heavily on the bars of the railing for support, while her entire body shook with sobs. Kakashi moved to take a step forward when Jiraiya appeared in a puff of smoke and pulled her gently into his arms and away from the ledge. The remainder of team seven stepped closer to find Tsunade mumbling over and over again to Jiraiya.  
  
"He's gone; the Kyuubi's been released." Sasuke inhaled sharply and Kakashi's shoulders sagged in resignation, as though he knew it from the moment the wave knocked him to the floor.  
  
"He can't be." Sasuke denied it, stepping forward and glaring angrily at the older woman. "You have to be talking about someone else."  
  
"No, Naruto's soul... everything that he is... was... was destroyed when that shockwave hit us." They all paled at her words. It was too much to even consider that the blonde was gone from the village, let alone their lives forever.  
  
"What are you talking about, baba!?" Sasuke yelled, demanding an explanation. His patience was already hair-thin at the mere idea of losing his best friend.  
  
"Naruto's soul, his spirit, has become null and void." She repeated, holding tighter to Jiraiya's arm as she lay in his lap. Feeling her need for this comfort, the sennin held her even closer. "The Kitsune has either... expelled it or..." No matter how hard she tried and no matter which way she went, she could not get herself to repeat it.  
  
"He's dead." Jiraiya spoke up for her, holding down his emotions as long as he could. "That shockwave killed him. It was inevitable when he left Konoha. He gave in to the Kitsune's desire to have his mother and now the fox demon has been released. He has full use of Naruto's... former body to cause all the chaos he wants. Revenge."  
  
"So then the blast..." Sakura trailed off, not entirely sure she wanted to hear the response.  
  
"It was a surge of chakra that was caused when someone released the seal that kept the Kitsune locked up." Tsunade sat up, wiping her hair from her dry eyes; she hadn't shed a tear yet. "The dominant soul purged the body of the weaker one, and from the blast it's obvious which one was stronger at the time." She closed her eyes slowly and began to rock back and forth as tears finally made their way past her darkened eyelashes and down her cheeks.  
  
"He's dead?" Sasuke spoke up after a while. It wasn't sinking in for him. "He can't be dead."  
  
"No, he can't." Tsunade repeated his words. "He wasn't supposed to die. Stupid piece of junk jewellery. He was supposed to live to become the Hokage after me. I promised him that he would. HE PROMISED ME!" Jiraiya nodded solemnly, rubbing her back slowly in small circles.  
  
"What are you talking about?" Sakura asked, curiously. Everyone knew about Naruto's boasts to become the next Hokage, but no one had ever heard Tsunade's version. She looked up at the trio and sighed.  
  
"It all started with the infamous chakra jutsu called Rasengan." She explained. "It's a move where you gather a small amount of chakra into your palm and spin it so ferociously that it becomes deadly when aimed at the right target.  
  
"What? How come I've never even heard of it?" Sasuke asked, interrupting. He was trying everything he could think of to keep his mind off of Naruto's fate. Kakashi motioned him to sit in front of Tsunade and Jiraiya as he explained it to the younger generation.  
  
"Rasengan is a very advanced technique that's only ever been mastered by three people. Jiraiya," he nodded to the sennin. "The Fourth," he looked up to the mountains. "And lastly by Naruto."  
  
"It took Yondaime three years to master the skill perfectly." Tsunade offered.  
  
"Matte!" Sakura interrupted this time. "It's impossible. Naruto knew that move just before Sasuke left. He was only with Jiraiya for barely two months before that, and he's the only one who could have taught Naruto the move." Jiraiya nodded and smiled in remembrance.  
  
"I was teaching Naruto how to use his chakra that way when we found Tsunade." He exclaimed.  
  
"He was such a loud mouth brat." Tsunade laughed. "He didn't even know who I was, nor did he care. As soon as I turned down the Hokage position and insulted it, he was all over me. He refused to allow the Hokage name to be disrespected in such a way and regardless of if I was a girl or not, he would set me straight. He was, after all, going to be the next Hokage. We ended up fighting. He tried to use Rasengan against me, but it was pitiful. I could tell he had the power, but no sense of control over it. So I made him a bet. I told him that if he could master Rasengan in one week I would recognise him as the next Hokage and see that it wasn't such an undesirable job." She laughed despite her broken heart. "He won. The little brat won. He trained harder than anyone I've ever seen and in one week Rasengan was his. Of course, the necklace only recognises future Hokages. It killed my boyfriend. It killed my little brother. And now it's taken away Naruto." She began to sob again.  
  
"He wasn't supposed to die." Jiraiya spoke up. He closed his eyes and looked to the floor, not able to hide his own set of tears from the group.  
  
Sasuke stood up suddenly, attracting all eyes. He glared at everyone who was already grieving.  
  
"How can you be so sure he's dead?!" He yelled, denial hitting him full force. It was too much for him to handle. "He isn't dead!! Stop crying, Sakura!! GET UP!!" He tried to lift the girl up, but it only made things worse.  
  
"Sasuke-kun, please don't do this to yourself." She whispered, trying to comfort him by placing a hand on his shoulder, but he smacked it away.  
  
"FUCK YOU!!" He raged. "FUCK ALL OF YOU!!! I'm going to murder that demon son of a bitch right now." He lashed out at anyone who dared come near him and stormed off of the roof, ignoring Sakura's frantic pleas for him to wait and let them help him deal with it.  
  
Deal with Naruto's death.  
  
He snorted to himself as he headed to his house. He wasn't going to deal with his death because he wasn't going to believe his private ray of sunshine had gone out like a light bulb. And if it was... true... that Naruto had been killed; he closed his eyes at the thought and balled his fists, blindly aiming for anything that came in his way, living or inanimate; he would hunt the Kyuubi until the day he died. Avenging his clan was put on the backburner right after he avenged Naruto. He WOULD avenge Naruto. Right after he admitted to himself that the boy was gone.  
  
That Naruto was dead.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
I know I should say something for my author's notes, but I think that this chapter speaks a lot more than some petty drabble.  
  
Please don't beg me to bring him back to life, etc. I've already got everything planned out, for the most part, and I really do enjoy reading the longer reviews. I plan on updating as soon as I can, so you don't need to tell me to. ^-^  
  
The next chapter will be posted on Friday (if I can get it done in time).  
  
***~In the next couple of chapters, the rating will go from PG-13 to an R. ~*** 


	37. Resignation

To PuiChi2 – I know I have been saying this since forever, but at chapter 12, I expected the whole Orochimaru raping Naruto to push it over, but it wasn't as big a deal as I originally thought it would be, but the reason it will be now is cause it's heading into the Citrus' Territory.  
  
*** YES THAT MEANS A LIME. ***  
  
And even though I figure you'll read it regardless of the warnings, and regardless of the fact that now a days nothing is to violent or course or sexually explicit for kids... it's a sad world we live in. The rating will change on the chapter that contains the limey bits.  
  
This also means it won't be viewed on the first page when you pull up the Naruto section as those fics only go up to PG-13.  
  
This is dedicated to C.M. Aeris Queen of Insanity who became reviewer number 30 for chapter 36. I am currently in shock over receiving that many reviews. Crap...  
  
Sorry for taking so long. I had expected to get on the comp for Friday, but we ended up cleaning the house... *curses* and I only got to it today... *types as fast as possible*  
  
Chapter Title: 37. Resignation  
  
He fell face first into the dirt just outside someone's doorstep. Lifting himself up to his knees, he spat out the dirt and looked up at where he'd landed. The door was painted a basic black and he frowned at the bleak appearance that offered his no answers. Just as he was about to place a hand on his knee to lift himself up, a breeze went through him and he looked down, nearly blushing at his clothing. Or lack there of. He was standing before a stranger's door, in nothing but a black shirt and a pair of dark blue boxer shorts, and he couldn't remember how he'd gotten there.  
  
He was about to raise a fist to knock on the door when something odd caught his eye, and he realised where he was. Almost invisible to the naked eye, in the upper corner of the door frame was a small crayon-scribble of a red and white fan. Sasuke had once told him that he'd drawn it himself on top of his brother's shoulders. It never would have come up if Sasuke hadn't pointed it out one day, and if he hadn't persisted to learn of his friend's origins. He was at Sasuke's house. He frowned again and, hearing footsteps fast approaching, turned around for an explanation.  
  
The owner of the large house was running up the walkway, head lowered and brows furrowed tightly. He stepped back, startled by his friend's appearance and was even more shocked to see him fighting with his emotions.  
  
"He's not dead." He repeated over and over to himself as he fought with the lock on his door. It didn't seem that he had even seen his forgotten friend. After cursing and dropping his keys, he finally threw the door open, oblivious to the questions that were hurled at him.  
  
"Who's dead?!" Naruto asked, confused beyond reason. He couldn't figure out who or what could have riled up his best friend so much to have him looking like that. He followed him into the house, just barely missing the door as it was slammed shut. "Sasuke, stop and talk to me!!" He yelled, but Sasuke neither saw him nor heard his voice and he suddenly realised how he'd avoided the slamming of the door.  
  
If he'd been solid, the door hinges would have scratched his bare arm, drawing blood. He looked down. No blood. Not even a scratch. He might have been there in spirit, but his body, he realised, was no where near Konoha.  
  
He winced remembering what had happened. The white light flashed before his eyes, and in the shockwave of chakra, his soul had been expelled and shot back to the village it originated from, resulting in his mouthful of doorstep dirt. He couldn't be seen by anyone. He couldn't be heard by anyone.  
  
He followed the distressed boy upstairs and watched as he gathered up all of his weapons. Angrily ripping open every bag he could get his hands on, Sasuke packed up every kunai and shuriken he could find hidden in his room. He paused on the last set of stars, fingering them thoughtfully before flinging them at the nearest wall, letting loose a cry of agony and burying his head in his hands.  
  
"Naruto can't be dead... can't..." He whispered to himself, trying to restrain his fury. Naruto was surprised by the emotion he could sense radiating off of the anguished boy. It hurt for him to see the Uchiha so broken down, as he was used to the boy who didn't care about him. He didn't expect that Sasuke would be so torn about his supposed death. He stepped forward and raised his hand to rest it in an offer of comfort on Sasuke's shoulder, but it didn't do anything except fall right through and he sighed in frustration.  
  
"Gomen Sasuke." He whispered, wishing he could be heard. Suddenly, Sasuke whipped his head around, looking through Naruto with a wild expression on his face.  
  
"Naruto?!" He yelled, frantically, standing from his bed. "Is that you?" He asked.  
  
"Sasuke?" Naruto replied. "Can you hear me? I'm alive!!"  
  
"Dobe..." Sasuke trailed off, shaking his head in disappointment. "I could have sworn I heard his voice." He sat back down on his bed and threw his arm over his face, taking in a deep shuddering breath. "I might be hearing things, but there's no way he can be gone."  
  
"I'm not, you idiot!!" Naruto yelled, frustrated that his voice would work one second and then fail him completely the other. He turned to the door, hearing the door creak open downstairs and hurried footsteps on the stairs coming to the door. Sasuke didn't move.  
  
"Sasuke-kun!" Sakura cried out, reaching his bedroom. "Please don't be like this. You're hurting yourself this way." He lifted his arm to glare at her intrusion, but she was persistent. "Onegai, Sasuke. How would Naruto feel to know you were going to get yourself killed over his death. He never liked you being an... avenger... in the first place. How would he feel if you became one over his death?" She asked, stepping closer from the door. Naruto watched, wondering how he would feel if Sasuke went on a killing spree on his behalf. He silently agreed with the girl.  
  
Sasuke stood up quickly and advanced on her with a dark, menacing look on his face. She was startled, and stumbled backwards into a wall. A gasp and a snarl erupted when he lifted his arms to either side of her head, effectively pinning her there.  
  
"I don't have to worry about whether or not he would be angry with me, because HE. IS. NOT. DEAD!!" He roared, balling a fist and punching through the plaster of the wall right beside Sakura's head. She winced and shifted her head from the spot, staring up at Sasuke in fear. Both of them noticed the blood trailing down his knuckles and between his fingers, but neither acknowledged it.  
  
"Sasuke." She breathed. "You're only hurting yourself by your denial. Hokage said-"  
  
"I don't give a shit what that bitch said!!"  
  
"Sasuke!!"  
  
"I don't! If she wants to believe Naruto was a pathetic weakling, then let her. I don't. I refuse to believe Naruto was just like other people."  
  
"He was only strong because of the Kitsune. I hate to say it, but it was true. He was forced out of his body by the Kitsune and without that power... he died from being so near the blast." He closed his eyes tightly as if that would seal out her words. She was making him believe. He didn't want to.  
  
Hesitantly, Sakura raised her hands to his shoulders and pushed him away, leading him to sit back on the bed.  
  
"Hokage said that Naruto was a very brave boy, and she's going to give him a Hokage funeral. Naruto would have been so proud." Behind her Naruto snorted. Even though he knew she was only trying to calm down Sasuke, he rolled his eyes at her words. He would have rather BEEN Hokage rather than have a Hokage funeral. The latter was worthless to him.  
  
"Can you be strong for us?" Sakura had continued talking while Naruto had been musing to himself. Sasuke looked up to her and the broken expression on his face caused her to burst into tears.  
  
Naruto moved so he could see Sasuke's face and was shocked to see such pain in his rival's eyes while his face remained as stone. Even now he refused to let himself lose control of his anguish. Now, when he had every right to. Sakura hugged him tightly, sobbing into his shoulder.  
  
"It's okay to cry, Sasuke-kun." She said, her words muffled in his shirt. "It's strong to be able to cry." Sasuke shook his head, frowning.  
  
"I can't cry." He whispered in reply, barely heard by Naruto's sharp hearing. "Not in front of you; not in front of anyone." She continued to cry until he couldn't take it anymore. He pushed her away and stood beside the glass sliding doors of his balcony with his back to her, his body racked with dry sobs.  
  
"Naruto was my best friend." He exclaimed softly. "My only friend... he can't be dead." He began his mantra again, whispering the same words of denial over and over again.  
  
"Sasuke..." Sakura was about to stand up and try to stop him, when the words changed.  
  
"Naruto wasn't weak. I'm not going to his funeral. He can't be dead." Naruto looked from one team mate to another, not sure what he should or could do. "Please leave." She started to object, but he shook his head, dismissing her words. "I'll be alright; you don't have to stay with me as if I were a child." She hesitated, appearing to go over everything she could possibly say to change his thoughts, but couldn't think of anything and nodded. Standing from her seat on the bed, she walked to the door.  
  
"Please don't say you won't come to the funeral." She said softly. "I'll go now, but I'm not going to stay away forever. I don't think you should be alone right now."  
  
"I don't care what you think." He snapped in response. "I want to be alone." She sighed and left the room; her soft footsteps echoing in the hallway until the front door was closed behind her.  
  
Sasuke, sure that she had left, went back to his bed and allowed his body to collapse onto it, weapons forgotten, and began whispering to himself again. Naruto glared at the boy in agitation, wondering how his rival could recede into himself so much. It just wasn't like the Sasuke he knew. If he thought it would do any good, the blonde may have screamed his head off and pulled tufts of hair out.  
  
The shifting of weight on the window sill attracted both pairs of eyes to the newest guest, Kakashi. Their teacher was crouched in the open window, watching the grieving boy sadly.  
  
"What do you want, Kakashi-sensei?" Sasuke asked resignedly.  
  
"I know how much pain you're going through." The Jounin started off. "It's difficult to lose someone who meant so much to you." The boy shrugged his shoulders indifferently.  
  
"He was supposed to be strong."  
  
"He was, but between him and the Kyuubi, he had the weaker chakra. It was instantaneous."  
  
"Is that supposed to make it any easier on me? Make me feel any better?"  
  
"It's supposed to make you feel better that he wasn't suffering in his final hours." Kakashi frowned as he realised that his young student wasn't going to be making things easy for him.  
  
"I would rather he suffered and lived longer than disappeared quickly without pain. I want him here with me. He was supposed to train me."  
  
"There will be other people that can help you."  
  
"They're not Naruto. Do you really value his life so cheaply?"  
  
"Of course not!"  
  
"Then don't expect me to. I don't know how I'm supposed to go from day to day, knowing I'll never feel his influence in the village again."  
  
"It will be tough but eventually you'll get through."  
  
"I suppose."  
  
"Come to the funeral." Kakashi changed the subject. "I heard you refusing to go."  
  
"Sure, whatever." Kakashi sighed and shifted his feet again, noticing that Sasuke hadn't once moved from the bed and appeared to be fast asleep. "I don't want to believe he'd dead, but I guess I have no other choice."  
  
"You're in shock." Kakashi observed.  
  
"Maybe." Kakashi looked as though he was about to say something else, but instead, he disappeared from the sill, opting to let Sasuke work through his problems on his own. From his own experiences, he knew it would be a harsh living, but Sasuke was old enough to take care of himself. He was just glad that Sasuke wasn't any 'closer' with Naruto, otherwise he might have spiralled into despair, much the way Jiraiya did when Orochimaru left the village the first time.  
  
"He can't be dead." Sasuke repeated to no body in particular. "He can't..." He paused, shaking his head and changing his mantra "He IS dead. He is dead. He is dead..."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah... a very Sasuke-esque chapter, focusing mainly on Sasuke's grief. I know it seems pointless... and it pretty much is... but at least Naruto isn't dead forever. Heck, he's not even really dead. The Kyuubi has his body, and his soul is in Konoha. To be honest, there's a bunch of things mentioned that foreshadow things that are going to come up in the very very very near future.  
  
Who really thought I had killed off Naruto? I adore him!!! I would never kill him off. He's the star!!  
  
Trubluewolfeyes gave me a relly funny idea, but yeah it was the Kitsune's chakra that made that blast. Actually, it was sort of like a magnet, the blast was caused by the expulsion of Naruto's soul... like how one side of a magnet is repelled away from another magnet.. kinda like that.  
  
Miko, obviously you didn't see it coming, because he's not dead. Also, the woman actually did ask about Naruto and the village in order to get his trust and let the Kyuubi out for a bit. I'm glad that most people were surprised. I hate it when the fic becomes too predictable.  
  
Dark Mimiru-Chan and TheTrueSilver are pretty quick to have picked up that he wasn't dead... course I don't actually think I'm that good at hiding things like that.  
  
To clarify things for Naruke, Tsunade didn't take him from the village. That was the woman. Naruto met up with her at the gates. Tsunade was stuck in the office doing paperwork to shut up Kotetsu and Izumo.  
  
I think that's answered as many questions as needed to be answered. 


	38. Naruto's Life

Okay, to clear a few things up about "Naruto's Death" (heh heh... and the chapter is called 'Naruto's Life')... no, Naruto's BODY isn't dead... the Kyuubi is just in control of it now, everyone thinks that the blast killed Naruto's soul which means he'll never come back. Naruto's body is still in motion, doing the Kyuubi's dirty work  
  
Also, the blast from the Kyuubi was nothing more than the woman's seal and the final releasing of the Kyuubi's soul... they didn't care whether it killed Naruto or not, so long as he was no longer in his own body. Kuroi Kitsune got it exactly. ^-^  
  
Chapter Title: 38. Naruto's Life  
  
Sasuke went through most of that week as an emotional zombie, only doing the bare necessities to keep himself alive. The same was said about his missions. Though Naruto followed him around (having nothing else to do), he never saw or heard another thing from his friend. Naruto was frustrated that he couldn't figure out how he'd made his voice heard the first time, and, as time went on, he began to pass it off as a fluke and even going so far as to believe it was nothing but Sasuke's imagination.  
  
Even though he'd promised everyone who visited him, Naruto didn't believe for one second that Sasuke would attend his funeral without someone actually forcing him to. He seemed content to stay in his house, but when the day finally came to hold the memorial service, it was Sakura who came and brought him to the monument.  
  
Sasuke hadn't even gotten out of bed that morning, knowing the importance of the day, and when the pink haired girl came over he was still curled up under the covers in just his boxers, eyes open but utterly blank. She closed her eyes tightly to stop her tears, and took a deep breath before prying the blankets from his cold grip.  
  
"Sasuke, get up! It's not even March and you're only in your shorts!" She blushed slightly at the sight of her long-time crush in nothing but a pair of underwear but quickly remembered why she was there. "Do you want to catch a cold!?" Normally he would roll over, shoot her a menacing glare and return to his former position. That morning, however, he didn't even flinch when the frigid air swept over his bare shoulders.  
  
"It doesn't matter." He replied, his voice taking on a dark, monotonous tone.  
  
"Like hell it doesn't!" She yelled back. "You promised us you would go to the funeral. Don't tell me you're going to stay in your empty house and mope around all day. Where is that going to get you?!"  
  
"I don't need your permission if I want to remain here."  
  
"Do you think that being a childish brat is going to bring him back? He's dead and gone, and you're going to have to learn to accept it. I doubt he'd like to learn that you're sulking yourself to death. What good is that?"  
  
"There's not much else left, now is there?" He replied, emotionlessly. Sakura fumed, clenching her fists.  
  
"Why are you being so difficult? Do you think you're the only one who loved him?" He gasped softly and rolled over to look at her. He took a breath to deny any sort of attraction to his rival, but she cut him off. "What about the rest of us? Have you even thought of what Iruka must be going through?! He loved him more than anyone, and yet he's still standing strong." He looked at the floor guiltily.  
  
"I don't think I can get up there and talk about him." He admitted. "He hated me for so long, and even if I did say something, I wouldn't know how much of it was his true self." She sighed and nodded.  
  
"Just come and pay your respects. No body expects you to speak."  
  
"I wish I could."  
  
"Doushite?"  
  
"I wish we could have ended in a place where I knew enough about him that I could tell people just what he meant to me."  
  
"You two were close, though, weren't you?" Sasuke sat up and ran his fingers through his hair, staring at a spot on the wall behind the girl. Naruto side-stepped the glance, getting the eerie feeling that he was looking AT him rather than through him.  
  
"I don't know." He whispered. "I'd like to think so. I'd like to think we were as close as brothers; in a way we were, but I... he... he shut me out, just like he shut out everyone else."  
  
"Come anyways." She pleaded with him. "Maybe you can learn something about him through what other people knew of him."  
  
"Sure." He stood up and, stretching a bit, went to the closet and pulled out the funeral clothing he'd kept from the Third's memorial. It had been altered by Kakashi (he knew Sasuke would never get it done himself and would be damned if he'd get a brand new one) and fit him comfortably.  
  
"I'll wait for you downstairs." The girl lowered her eyes respectfully and closed his bedroom door behind her. Hearing the rustling of fabric, she leaned back against the door and sighed in frustration.  
  
Sasuke's response had startled her. It seemed that generally, people had the same impression, but not even his closest friend claimed to know anything about him. He had managed to remain a well kept secret to everyone, and it wasn't until he was gone that anyone had realised it. She'd gone around to some of Naruto's closer friends; Iruka, Konohamaru, Hinata and even Kakashi, and all of them claimed to know nothing about the boy. She frowned to herself, the reality of the situation hitting her like a ton of bricks.  
  
No one had ever known the true Naruto. And no one ever would.  
  
***  
  
He waited, lying face first on the floor, his head resting on his arms. He didn't feel any sort of unease at being in Sasuke's room while he changed, nor did he feel any disgust. He had become used to catching glimpses of the pale skin from everything; battles to a simple changing of clothing. Chances were it wasn't something he hadn't seen before. But he soon became restless and, wanting to see what the big deal was over his funeral, Naruto pushed himself to his feet and began pacing.  
  
"Sasuke, would you hurry up?!" He growled under his breath, watching the boy pulling the garment over his head.  
  
"I'm coming." Sasuke mumbled reflexively and grabbed a set of weapons just in case. There had been rumours of the Kitsune thrashing villages with the blonde's body and he wanted to be more than ready if ever he got the chance to avenge his friend. He sighed to himself at the sorry state of the village and stepped into the hallway, following the girl down the stairs and out of the cold and lonely house.  
  
As they walked they could see a small crowd gathering in their funeral shrouds at the base of the monument, on the roof of the Hokage offices. They all walked in, Sasuke content to remain at the back of the funeral service as he had no real desire to be there in the first place, but Sakura dragged him to two seats in the front reserved for them. Sasuke frowned, scanning the faces of the people who had come. Sakura pulled on his shirt to signal him to sit beside her and, reluctantly, he turned to the front and sat down.  
  
It took a couple of minutes for the memorial to start, and a couple of the adults spoke on behalf of the boy in the beginning, and Naruto noticed that from the moment someone started to speak of what they'd seen of him, Sasuke had his gaze riveted to the speaker. He smiled remembering the boy's adamant belief that anyone knew anything about Naruto. It seemed that regardless of what he'd claimed earlier, he wanted to know what his rival had been like with others. He wanted to know what other people had seen of him. He wanted to know as much about the now-dead boy's life so that he could know as much as possible.  
  
Konohamaru walked slowly to the front of the crowd not long after. Tears were streaming down his cheeks, much like at his grandfather's funeral, but he was silent. There was a long silence as he stared out at the many faces before he began his eulogy. Unlike the adults before him, he didn't have any paper with him.  
  
"Naruto-niichan was something of an untouchable hero for me for a long time." He started, wiping his face of the tears. "For most of my life I'd always been treated like glass because I was the third Hokage's grandson. Naruto was the first person I met who didn't. I was playing a prank on my grandfather when we first met. We got into an argument and I dared him to hit me. He was about to. I told him that he wouldn't dare because I was Hokage's grandson. He hesitated before slamming his fist down on my head." A few people chuckled quietly, knowing the blonde never followed any rules.  
  
"After that I practically forced him to train me because I saw him as this magnificent prankster. I told him that I was going to become Hokage to show everyone that I wasn't just the revered grandson. He was the one who told me there were no shortcuts in life. You have to work hard in order to get what you want in life." Naruto, who was staring at Sasuke, saw the boy visibly shift in his seat at the last sentences. After another couple of minutes, Konohamaru returned to his seat and Neji reluctantly stood up. He walked slowly and gracefully to the front and stared back at the small crowd with his emotionless white eyes. Naruto watched him for a moment, surprised by their likeness to Sasuke's before returning his gaze to Sasuke when Neji began to speak, gauging his reaction to the speeches.  
  
"Naruto-kun never believed in destiny." He said softly. Naruto saw Sasuke's brow furrow tightly and he remembered that his rival had been in the hospital during his battle with the Hyuuga. In fact, Sasuke had never seen any interaction between the two of them except when they went to rescue him. "It was always something I had the utmost faith in. When I first saw him he looked like a total idiot who probably hadn't learned anything since graduating from the academy. There was no way a loud-mouthed idiot like him could possibly come close to matching me in the Chuunin exam and I believed that it was his destiny to fall quickly and without much of a fight to my touch." Naruto didn't notice the uncomfortable shifting of his rival in his seat. He didn't notice that the speaker's words were making him edgy.  
  
Neji paused, taking in a deep breath, but showed no other signs of distress at his friend's passing.  
  
"He was so strong in his beliefs that he kept going when I thought I'd had him beat. He just had this way of making people believe in him. He was so strong. Even when we were assigned a nearly hopeless mission from Tsunade, he was the one who kept up the hope of the group. I don't think there was a single one of us who doubted Naruto-kun's ability to bring Sasuke back from the darkness."  
  
Up next was Neji's cousin, Hinata, who looked completely frightened at the idea of speaking to the entire crowd. Like the rest of the younger generation, though, she didn't hold a single sheet of paper.  
  
"Naruto-kun was always my role model." She smiled fondly. "He was always so strong even when no body else believed he could keep going. He was always the one thing I would think of whenever I needed the strength to keep on going. I just had to think of him and know I'd be letting him down if I didn't give everything as much as I possibly could. Even when everything was against him, he never ran away, he always faced every challenge head on." Sasuke snorted aloud, halting her speech.  
  
"And look what happened to him the one time he did run and hide." He muttered under his breath. No one but Sakura and Naruto heard his words, and Hinata continued speaking. From then on, neither Sasuke nor Naruto listened to the speeches. They had stopped saying things that were important. After Hinata, Shikamaru stepped up, relating in true Nara style how tiresome the blonde was and exclaiming that it must be something in the hair (he glanced meaningfully at Ino) before the last person stood up to speak to everyone.  
  
Startled, Sasuke turned to see Sakura walking to the front. She took a deep breath and looked at everyone, not knowing how people were going to react knowing exactly what she'd done to ruin her relationship with Naruto. Many even thought she was the reason he'd left in the first place.  
  
"I know I broke his heart." She exclaimed. Sasuke shook his head remembering the night he'd been visited by the outraged blonde. It wasn't her who broke his heart, it was what she did. "I wish there was something I could do to that everything back and have him at my side again, but all I have are my wishes. Even after what I did to him, he was always trying to make the tension between us as unnoticeable as possible. He always tried to make things easier. I talked to a lot of people when I was trying to figure out what I could possibly say to all of you, and I found that very few people knew who he was on the inside. But what I did learn was that he valued friends above just about everything else. He would protect them with his life. He also gave more than one hundred percent in everything he did and he was constantly doing everything he could to make people forget about the Kitsune sealed inside of him. In retrospect, everyone is always guilty for neglecting their loved ones... they always regret stuff they did or didn't do. They always cry because such a beautiful life was taken from them. Maybe Naruto didn't deserve to be taken... but I know I deserved to have him taken from me." She sniffled quietly and went back to her seat.  
  
Naruto had tuned out everyone's voices, not caring a single bit about what they had to say about him. He didn't see a point in listening because the one person's opinion he valued most wouldn't speak. Sasuke had always been as much of an enigma as he'd been to everyone else, and he longed more than anything to know what he felt about him. He knew Sasuke couldn't stand the thought of him never coming back again, but all he remembered was the fighting. Things would have been a lot simpler if he could hear all the turmoil running through his rival's head, but the Uchiha was characteristically cold and silent. Many other people turned in their seats, expecting the boy to stand up and speak to them, but he ignored their gazes and stared coldly ahead.  
  
"Bastards." He muttered under his breath. "Why is it that you only care when he's dead?"  
  
Only Naruto heard him.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
I figure... not very many people are going to like this chapter as it's got a lot of going nowhere talking, however, there is a lot of hidden meanings in some of the speeches, Neji's for example. In fact, both Hyuugas are somewhat foreshadowing in the near future, both in what they say and Sasuke's reaction to them.  
  
Okie, I've probably given away too much already... so I'll just move on to the next chapter! 


	39. Haunted

Did you know... Sakura's birthday is about to come up... I think it already passed, but in the story she's almost seventeen! Hee hee...  
  
Chapter Title: 39. Haunted  
  
Everyone decided to wander around once the funeral was finished and the adults closest to him, tried to figure out what to do with Naruto's empty coffin. Sasuke stood from his chair and began walking towards the doors to the stairwell when an old familiar voice caught his attention, as well as the words.  
  
"That little brat deserved everything he got! I warned you that he would never be able to keep the Kitsune subdued for long and no body listened to me." He saw the old woman from the hut yelling at Tsunade, who was just barely containing her temper. Kakashi stormed over, not caring to be polite or even civil with her.  
  
"That boy is DEAD!" He snarled back. "Don't you have any respect for the dead?"  
  
"I wouldn't care even if this is his funeral!" She had a menacing look in her eyes.  
  
"Well it is, and you should!" Tsunade butted in. "How would you like it if someone said something like this about your child at their funeral?!  
  
"Do you even know who I am?!"  
  
"No, and I don't care!" The two women continued their shouting match until the old woman reached up and smacked Tsunade across the face.  
  
"Do YOU know who *I* am?!!" The Hokage shrieked and Kakashi had to restrain her from attacking the woman, while some other villagers came and dragged the older of the two away.  
  
Both boys were wide-eyed at the exchange and as Sasuke turned to leave the soul whistled low under his breath. He'd never seen this side of Tsunade before, except when she was irritated by Jiraiya.  
  
"What a bitch." He muttered, deciding to follow his old rival. Sasuke nodded his head and grunted in agreement.  
  
"I know." Naruto stopped suddenly and gasped at the reply, and it wasn't for another couple of footsteps that Sasuke did the same and whirled around. He scanned the area around him for the speaker but almost everyone had already left and he was alone in the stairwell. He narrowed his eyes, allowing them to glow red with the use of the Sharingan, but even then he saw no chakra. After another moment he continued down the stairs, a lot less relaxed than he was when he'd entered them.  
  
Naruto was surprised, more than anything else and followed after, chattering away, but nothing he said afterwards was heard by his friend. After a couple of minutes, the blonde finally gave up and his steps became heavier as he became even more frustrated than before.  
  
***  
  
They continued on towards the Hokage gardens in silence, occasionally interrupted by Naruto's inaudible curses, but no matter what he tried, he couldn't remember how he'd made his voice heard. He tried everything from shouting to whispering, but nothing worked. He sighed and sat down at the base of the tree Sasuke was sitting in.  
  
"Sasuke, you bastard!" He mumbled. "Maybe it's just YOU who can't hear ME, and not the other way around." In his sulking he tried picking up rocks and chucking them at the silent boy. Stones, pebbles, everything. Some of them didn't move, but occasionally he caught one and it flew through the air recklessly. He never even noticed, his sense of touch still with the Kitsune in his body. He only became aware of it when one whizzed past Sasuke's face and he looked down, only to be met with a smooth pebble to the forehead. He winced and was on his feet in a second, trying to determine the source of the stones, while Naruto stared dumbstruck at his hands to see what he had done to make the stones move.  
  
Through his translucent skin, the blonde was aghast to see the thin chakra lines fading from his finger tips. He smiled to himself and tried to pick up another stone. The chakra surged through his arm and the stone was lifted.  
  
"This is almost better than the Byakugan." He grinned to himself, turning to see Sasuke hop down from his branch, scanning the area for signs of life. It was only when Naruto was using his chakra that he could be seen with the Sharingan and, although Sasuke was beginning to pace nervously, Naruto's face brightened up entirely. He'd figured out how to touch things, and with a little bit of effort, he knew he'd be able to talk aloud.  
  
He began circling the boy and released some chakra, chuckling to Sasuke. The Uchiha whirled around again, but saw nothing but a small wisp of used chakra disappearing.  
  
"I know something you don't know!" Naruto sang, his voice filled with laugher.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke couldn't relax. Every step he took filled him with nervousness at the disembodied laughter or the sight of objects floating in mid air. He realised quick enough that no one else was going to see or hear these things. He'd once asked Sakura to turn around to see the floating apple behind her head, but when she turned around the apple had been dropped back into the basket, earning him a confused pitying look. He never said another word about it, knowing they would think he'd started to go crazy from grief.  
  
Ironically enough, he never had the time to mourn over Naruto's death anymore; he was so busy with looking over his shoulder every day. He tried everything he could think of to get to the source of his hauntings, but in the end he could do nothing but ignore them. They weren't hurting him after all.  
  
One night, a few days later, Sakura invited him and Kakashi to dinner at her house. He could tell she thought him crazier every time she saw him and felt almost insulted that both her and their teacher had taken it upon themselves to look out for him. If he'd had any choice in leaving his house, he wouldn't have gone, but Kakashi stopped by just to make sure he came over.  
  
They walked in silence, which irritated Sasuke almost as much as the glances Kakashi continuously shot him, though he thought the younger boy didn't notice them. In fact, Sasuke was about to growl a warning at his teacher when they finally reached the house. Sakura and her mother were waiting in the doorway, and the snow had been brushed off the front porch. It was only mid march, but the spring thaw seemed to be late.  
  
"Come in, you two." The older of the two women exclaimed, ushering them inside. "You must be cold." She took their jackets and shooed them towards the dinner table, which was already piled with food.  
  
Sitting down quietly, Sakura and her family began passing dishes around and filling their plates. Sasuke refrained from taking too much and listened idly to the dinner conversation while he nibbled at his chopsticks.  
  
"Did you know there was word that the Kitsune's already destroyed several villages on his way to the Hidden Sand?" Haruno-san spoke up, spreading a bit of gossip he'd heard earlier that day in the flower shop. Sasuke's ears pricked up, but he made no other motion to show he was even paying any attention.  
  
"Really, dear?"  
  
"Yeah, the word is that it is planning on allying with them instead of the Hidden Leaf."  
  
"That'll be two demons they'll have gotten a hold of then, wouldn't it?" Kakashi shook his head.  
  
"Haruno-san, there's no need to worry yet." He didn't look like he'd even touched his meal yet. "When Tsunade-hime feels there is a threat in the Kyuubi's advancement to the Sand, he will be dealt with. Either way, no harm will come to the village."  
  
"You might think so, Hatake-san, but it's our daughter's life that may be on the line fighting this monster."  
  
"As is mine." He replied sternly. Sasuke rose from his seat abruptly and cleared his throat.  
  
"Sumimasen." He muttered under his breath, not liking where the conversation was heading. He left the room and, grabbing his jacket, went outside into the snow for some fresh air. He took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. Naruto watched him from a distance.  
  
He'd held back from bugging Sasuke all day, and though he was itching to do something to his friend, he was halted by the slight speckle of sadness that seemed to seep through the cracks in his rival's face of stone. He wondered if there wasn't something he could do to change things around. He sat on the steps of the porch, gazing blankly into the snow, while Sasuke walked slowly down towards the lawn.  
  
Both boys were lost in thought until Naruto jumped up, apparently having seen something to spark his creative side. He grinned mischievously at Sasuke's back and began walking on his tip-toes, forgetting that it made no difference. Without a second thought, he sent out chakra to the palms of his hands and picked up a large handful of snow, chucking it at the back of his rival's head. He snickered to himself as Sasuke froze where he was and slowly turned around, a look of murder in his eyes.  
  
"Stop hiding from me, you idiot!" He yelled. "Show yourself!" Naruto bent down and wrote one word in the snow.  
  
DOBE  
  
"NARUTO!?" He exclaimed. "But I don't believe in ghosts." He huffed stubbornly. Naruto stepped closer and poked him in the forehead.  
  
"No, baka." He whispered softly into the other boy's ear. Both were surprised at Naruto's ability to have his chakra felt and the 'ghost' grinned as a wicked thought came over him.  
  
He waited for a couple of seconds until Sasuke turned around subconsciously before concentrating a gentle flow of chakra to the palms of his hands and thrust them against his back, testing out his new-found ability. Sasuke wasn't quick enough to catch himself from falling, which earned himself a mouthful of the fluffy cold.  
  
The blond erupted into laughter and jumped around beside his growling and cursing friend. It succeeded in bringing out both Sakura and Kakashi. They stood on the porch, eyeing Sasuke in the snow carefully.  
  
"Daijoubu, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura asked, her face showing concern at the sight of him on his hands and knees, covered in snow.  
  
"Yeah." He muttered, standing up and brushing off a little of the snow. "Daijoubu."  
  
"We heard laughter." Kakashi exclaimed.  
  
"Laughter?" Sasuke hesitated, looking around for any sign of his 'ghost'. "I tripped and fell in the snow. What would make that a laughing matter?" He asked rhetorically, sarcasm dripping from his voice.  
  
"Are you coming back inside?" Sakura asked after a moment of silence. He nodded and started up the steps, following them inside and back to the dinner table. The two elder Harunos smiled at his entrance and they began to finish eating.  
  
Not two minutes back into the meal, Naruto began to test Sasuke's patience again by poking and prodding not only the boy's hands and arms, but his face and sides as well. It wasn't anything that would catch the others' attention, and even Sasuke knew it.  
  
Throughout the meal, the dark-haired genin was close to breaking, but he managed to stick it out until he had locked his door behind him.  
  
"NARUTO!!" He yelled, looking around the front hallway. "What the hell were you doing!?"  
  
"Hey, it was fun!" He laughed, poking Sasuke in the side again. His friend flinched and turned to stare at where the chakra had come from.  
  
"It was not! Have you been the one doing this the whole time?!"  
  
"Aa!"  
  
"Dobe! You've had me thinking it was an enemy."  
  
"I know. I've been with you for a while." Sasuke frowned, and his voice softened.  
  
"Aren't you supposed to be dead?"  
  
"Yeah... but I didn't feel like dying just yet... maybe in a few more years."  
  
"Naruto!" Sasuke snapped. "This isn't supposed to be funny! Everyone believes you're dead! Even I was starting to."  
  
"Well there's nothing I can do about that right now. You're just stuck with me for the time being." The blonde shrugged out of habit.  
  
"How long is a while?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"You said you've been with me for a while, how long?"  
  
"I saw you run to your house to try and kill the Kyuubi."  
  
"And you didn't think to tell me you were still here then?!"  
  
"I couldn't figure out how this whole thing worked!!" Naruto retorted. "I only just got the hang of it all." Sasuke nodded and moved into the house.  
  
"So have you been to see anyone else?"  
  
"Nope, I've been with you for the whole time. I liked staying with you, even though it frustrated me that I couldn't do anything for so long. It's not like I would have gone to visit Sakura voluntarily anyways."  
  
"Did you hear what she said about you at the funeral?"  
  
"Not really, I tuned her out. But I did notice that you wouldn't talk, why?" Sasuke flushed and sagged into a recliner lazily. He turned away from the direction of the voice, hesitant to answer.  
  
"I didn't want to." Naruto sighed deeply and shook his head.  
  
"Fine, be stubborn. I've been using my chakra for too long, I'm going to let you go to sleep."  
  
"Wait!" Sasuke looked up. "You're using chakra?"  
  
"Yeah, I figured it was the only way I can use my voice or move things. Use your Sharingan while I talk... I'm sure you can see the source of it." Sasuke nodded and let his Sharingan be released. Sure enough there was a small amount of chakra right in front of him. He blinked slowly and his eyes returned to their natural colour, a brief smile flitting across his face.  
  
"Naruto." He exclaimed.  
  
"Yeah?"  
  
"I'm glad you're not dead."  
  
"Me too. I plan on haunting you for a long time yet."  
  
"And you don't already?"  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
To Teki Star don't worry about the SasuNaru stuffs. I'm sure that next chapter you'll be very happy indeed. I'm not going to give anything away, but there is a little bit of a realisation... and Naruto puts his chakra to good use, letting his prankster out. Also, starting next chapter FOR SURE the rating will jump to R... so if you're reading this, you might not see my story on the general ff.n page because they only show up to PG-13 on the first one.  
  
And also, a couple of people mentioned the Kyuubi. He'll come up again, soon... I just want to start with the LIME scenes between Sasuke and Naruto first before going back to that... The thing is... I really can't see Naruto without the Kyuubi... he just becomes a boring character... so no I don't plan on killing off the Kitsune just yet.  
  
I never noticed it until people brought it up, but Naruto wasn't creeped out by the funeral, mostly because his mind was elsewhere... and he really didn't care about it... there was no body, and he's not really dead. Heh... but I suppose if he'd been paying attention he'd be a little weirded out about it all..  
  
I'm definitely going to have fun with the next chapter. It's not a full lime, but hopefully it will be suggestive enough to satisfy all you people, especially those who enjoy torturing Sasuke. And on to the lime... 


	40. Touch of Insanity

First things first. I forgot to thank Ookima last chapter for being my 500th reviewer! I'm so proud. There. Done.  
  
Wow... I can't believe I made it to chapter 40. and it's going to have a bit of sexual innuendo, too! Okay... less talk... more typing...  
  
Chapter Title: 40. Touch of Insanity  
  
A week and a half went by and Naruto was still with Sasuke. They had spent a lot of time talking about everything and nothing and they seemed to get a lot closer, even though Sasuke was still the only one who knew the details of Naruto's current lack of body. There were often times when he wondered to himself whether he'd gone mad or Naruto was telling him the truth, but it was always the occasional sight of chakra being used, or the feel of said chakra gliding across his skin that reminded him otherwise.  
  
He sighed, staring listlessly at the ceiling of his room, tracing the cracks in it with his eyes. The sun was starting to set and the red glow of the dying light was beginning to make the bare ceiling look a lot more appealing.  
  
He didn't need to look down to know where his rival was, he could feel the familiar touch of chakra dancing in circles across his exposed abdomen. He closed his eyes, enjoying the contact. He'd told Naruto a couple of days earlier of his fears of going insane, and actually requested that occasional tap on the shoulder or poke in the ribs or caress across the cheek to remind him of his sanity.  
  
"And she's been checking up on me constantly." He growled. "It's worse than when you brought me back from Orochimaru."  
  
"I know." Naruto replied softly, exhaustion starting to settle in from using his chakra all day. He lay his head down on the bed, beside Sasuke's hips and continued tracing patterns on the bare skin, grinning at the boy's complaints.  
  
"It's even gotten so bad that she's ignoring Lee."  
  
"It's too bad, though. You would have thought by the first thousand 'daijoubu' replies she would have gotten the message. She must think you're a wreck. Either that or you're keeping it bottled up."  
  
"I know. I wish she'd just get off my back for two seconds and let me breath." Naruto silently agreed and dragged the strand of chakra down to the hipbone farthest from him and traced a line from one to the other, just barely above the hem of his boxer shorts.  
  
A stifled moan startled him out of his sluggish haze and he looked up to his rival's face, wondering if he'd hurt him. His eyes were shut tightly, but the briefest of smiles was fixed there as well, turning the corners of his mouth slightly. He was confused at first, but looked back to where his finger was frozen over Sasuke's other hipbone and realization dawned over his features.  
  
He continued moving his fingers along Sasuke's side, up and down both arms and back to his hips, before allowing them to venture down to Sasuke's kneecaps and back up again. Again, Naruto watched as the Uchiha stifled moans and whimpers at his touch, not knowing that Naruto could see everything he was forcing down. The fox grinned mischievously and chuckled to himself knowing that now he had Sasuke at the mercy of his touches.  
  
He continued his ministrations on Sasuke's legs and up his thighs until Sasuke suddenly gasped aloud and his eyes shot open.  
  
"Yamero!" Sasuke hissed through his teeth, trying to calm his hitched breathing. "No more."  
  
"Doushite?"  
  
"I don't like you touching me like that." Sasuke replied, biting his tongue from replying in a way that might give away his true thoughts. Naruto rolled his eyes, forgetting Sasuke couldn't see him.  
  
"I thought you asked me to touch you... why can't I touch you there? It doesn't hurt, does it?" His voice emitted a mocking challenge.  
  
"No..." Sasuke trailed off, wondering how to word it. "It doesn't hurt at all. That's just it. It feels TOO good."  
  
"I thought that was the point." Naruto purred, laughter in his voice. Sasuke growled a curse at his rival and rolled away from him, to face the other side.  
  
"I don't want us to go down that road." He exclaimed, huffing in mock anger. Naruto frowned, but didn't miss the shifting of Sasuke's legs to get comfortable. He smirked to himself and a feeling of triumph washed over him. It was surprising to learn the effect his chakra was having on his friend's body.  
  
"Fine." He whispered and left the room.  
  
***  
  
Later on in the night, Lee looked up through the leaves of the forest and smiled up at the moonlight. It was just bright enough for him to see what he was doing. Spinning around, he landed another kick on the nearest tree. He had been practicing every chance he got, and occasionally even had Neji out working with him, but he still had a slight limp. He didn't mind it much, and was just thankful he was able to fight again and that the operation had been a success. The only thing he was beginning to get frustrated with was Tsunade-hime's adamant refusal to allow him to take missions, though he was able to mask his frustrations quite well from everyone else.  
  
He took another swing at the tree trunk and smiled to himself, enjoying the peace and quiet of being alone. He was just mulling over that thought when he felt eyes in the shadows of the forest watching him. He paused for a second, wondering if there were enemies watching him before remembering his limp prevented him form being a worthy target. He sighed softly and continued training, all the time aware to the single set of eyes completely focused on his movements.  
  
After a while the figure stepped out of the shadows. Lee turned around suddenly and was startled at who it was.  
  
"Sakura!" He exclaimed. "What are you doing out so late at night?" He walked over to her, keeping her gaze, but her eyes dropped after a second, ashamed with herself.  
  
"I may not have liked him, but I did love him and now he'll never know I cared." She cried. He frowned at her outburst. She ignored the look he was giving her and continued. "He died and his last memory of me is being in bed with you." He chuckled softly and pulled her into his arms. "He'll never know I loved him."  
  
"Of course he knew." He shook his head. "He always knew."  
  
They remained that way for a few minutes, before Sakura pulled away suddenly. She'd had her face buried in Lee's shoulder and she stared at the wet spot from her tears that was left on his sweater.  
  
"Do you think I'm a horrible person because I'm in your arms now and yet still in love with someone else?" She asked. Lee frowned and shook his head in response.  
  
"You're not." He said. "I'll always be there with open arms whenever you need me, regardless of if you return my feelings or not."  
  
"Gomen nas-"  
  
"It was almost three months ago." He interrupted. "You don't need to keep apologizing to me."  
  
"I don't think Kakashi-sensei or Sasuke-kun will ever forgive me enough, Sasuke especially. How can you stand having to start over from scratch when everything around you is so tense?" He looked down at his once injured leg. He offered a smile.  
  
"It's hard." He replied. "I had a really tough time, but I had friends to lean on, Neji and TenTen. Plus Gai-sensei is the coolest!" She snickered at his attempts to lighten the mood. Reaching up on her toes, she gave him a quick peck on the cheek and a tight squeeze before leaving for home.  
  
"Arigatou!" She called over her shoulder. "Ja mata!"  
  
"Ja ne!" He replied, his night being considerably brightened.  
  
***  
  
In the morning, Naruto had woken up early and was impatiently waiting for Sasuke to wake up. At the first sign of movement, he pounced on his rival and began poking him mercilessly until he declared he was awake.  
  
"Sasuke, I'm bored!" He whined. "Don't you have any missions or something?"  
  
"It's not even nine and you're bored already?" Sasuke yawned. "We don't have any missions today, which is why I had planned to sleep in, dobe!" Naruto huffed and poked the other boy in the side again.  
  
"But I thought you said we did." Sasuke looked up, confused for a second before his eyes shot open wide with realisation.  
  
"Shit, I forgot!" He leapt out of bed and ran towards his closet. "You were supposed to wake me up!"  
  
"I did."  
  
"You were supposed to wake me ON TIME!" Sasuke rephrased.  
  
"It's not my fault you weren't specific enough." He heard Naruto laughing at his frustration and decided to ignore him for a second to get ready for his mission. Pulling out a shirt and a pair of shorts he walked briskly towards the washroom.  
  
"You stay here while I change." He commanded, not entirely trusting of Naruto after the previous night. Naruto rolled his eyes. "I saw that." Sasuke called over his shoulder. Naruto's eyes widened in surprise and he stuck out his tongue at the back of Sasuke's head. Just before Sasuke closed the door behind him, he snorted and looked over his shoulder.  
  
"I saw that too."  
  
"Stupid bastard." Naruto grumbled loud enough for Sasuke to hear through the door.  
  
***  
  
They walked up to Kakashi, who was sitting on the railing of the bridge, reading from a little sheet of paper. He looked up at Sasuke's footsteps and nodded briefly, shoving the paper in his pocket.  
  
"I know you've not been yourself lately since Naruto's death, so I think maybe you should take a little more time off away from missions." He exclaimed, standing up tall and clapping a hand on the genin's shoulder. Sasuke frowned and brushed it off.  
  
"I'm perfectly fine."  
  
"You say this now, but Naruto hasn't been gone for too long, and we all know how hard you took his death." Sasuke narrowed his eyes and his cheeks warmed. Kakashi continued on, unaware. "No body would fault you if you took off another couple of days."  
  
"I would fault myself." Kakashi studied his student for a moment before sighing and nodding.  
  
"I've already split up the missions between me and Sakura, but I have heard word that people are starting to wonder when Naruto's apartment is going to be sold. Thought you might make it your personal mission to check into it." Sasuke nodded, frowning to himself. "Oh, and Iruka is already there, sorting through some of his things." Kakashi added.  
  
"What do you want me to do about it?" Sasuke asked, frowning slightly.  
  
"Naruto's home is probably going to go on sale soon, along with all of his things, so if there was anything you wanted to save from the auction, you might want to head down there." Even though he couldn't see him, the Uchiha knew his friend was panicking.  
  
"I don't want to lose my things." Naruto whispered softly into his ear. Sasuke nodded again to Kakashi and walked off in the direction of Naruto's apartment without any further words.  
  
***  
  
When they got to the apartment, both boys were surprised to find Iruka struggling with the lock on Naruto's hidden room.  
  
"Sasuke!" Iruka said when he spotted the boy.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
  
"This room won't open, no matter what I do." He nodded to the cursed door. "I think it might be either jammed or locked, but I haven't figured out where the key is yet." Sasuke walked up to the door and studied the frame for a moment.  
  
"Could it be sealed with chakra?"  
  
"It could, but then the seal would have been dissolved at Naruto's death." Sasuke turned around and stared at the man.  
  
"But if he wasn't dead then the seal would still be working?" He asked. Iruka stopped and thought about it for a second.  
  
"Yeah, it would, but Naruto isn't alive anymore. You've heard some of the reports about the Kyuubi's rampage through the forests nearby. Naruto wouldn't allow that to happen if he was alive."  
  
"But what if he isn't with the Kyuubi?"  
  
"Why are you pushing this subject?" Iruka questioned, looking at the young boy curiously. "It's been almost a month. You shouldn't still be in denial."  
  
"I'm not in denial." Sasuke spat back. "I was just thinking of all the possibilities. You forget that that grave is still empty." Iruka sighed and walked to the door.  
  
"Believe what you want, but you're only making it harder on yourself." He hesitated, raising his hand to the doorknob. "I'd like you to avoid saying such things while I'm present. I don't like getting my hopes up, and I want to move on. I can't stand living in mourning for all of my life." He left, not allowing Sasuke the chance to protest.  
  
"You should have revealed yourself to him as well." He said to the empty room.  
  
"He's already lost so many things, and I wouldn't want to hurt him by making him think he was insane." Naruto replied. "You remember how you felt. I'm not very well going to waste my chakra convincing Iruka-niisan that I'm alive too. It'll be too much strain to split myself up between you two. Plus, you saw him. He's doing okay now." Sasuke sighed in defeat and looked back to the door.  
  
"Is it sealed?" He asked.  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Open it."  
  
"No."  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"I believe we've had this discussion before."  
  
"What's behind this door that is so secret that you have to keep it from even me?"  
  
"Let's just call it the skeletons of my closet." Sasuke turned around. "Please just leave it be." He nodded and scanned the room.  
  
"What will you do if they do put this apartment on auction?" There was silence.  
  
"Naruto?"  
  
"I won't lose much, I suppose." He replied. A picture taped to the wall floated off, and Sasuke immediately knew where his rival was. He walked closer and looked over the invisible shoulder at the photo. It was him and Kashiya from the forest, taken by Konohamaru.  
  
"You kept this?" The picture moved up and down in, what Sasuke assumed was a nod. He was surprised to see the scene from another perspective. Him and Kashiya looked so...  
  
"We look so peaceful." Sasuke took a step back and shook his head.  
  
"That wasn't you, Naruto. It was Kashiya." He denied.  
  
"That's not true, asshole." Naruto's voice sounded defensive. "I was Kashiya, or did you forget?"  
  
"In my mind you were someone else. You weren't my stupid rival."  
  
"And you weren't a cold unfeeling bastard." Sasuke huffed and turned his back to his rival and the picture. There wasn't much he could do when Naruto was upset like that.  
  
Suddenly he felt a shiver run down his spine and he realised that Naruto was using his chakra to run strands of chakra under his shirt, down his back. Sasuke tensed, realising that Naruto was angry about something other than his denial. He wouldn't have gotten so worked up over something so slight.  
  
"Naruto." He whispered, meaning for it to come out strong and commanding. It came out so soft, it was practically a moan. "Yamero." He added, not making much difference. Naruto continued his teasing, moving the chakra along his sides and around to the boy's abdomen, tracing their way along each muscle.  
  
Sasuke moved quickly, picking up the picture from where Naruto had dropped it to the floor and stuck it back to the wall.  
  
"Why are you running?" Naruto asked, his voice so low it brought an involuntary shiver to the back of his rival's neck. Sasuke rested his hands against the wall and gritted his teeth, feeling the chakra again on his skin. This time it was touching him everywhere.  
  
"I'm not running from anything, dobe." He hissed through his clenched teeth. "I already told you I don't want you touching me like that." Naruto laughed and his chakra began to move up and down Sasuke's thighs, slowly.  
  
"You're such a spoil sport." Naruto chuckled, blowing a wisp of chakra across the other boy's neck. "I'm the one who doesn't have a body. At least allow me this one little bit of fun." But the breath was too much for Sasuke's senses and he dashed to the bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind him. Naruto laughed at the futile attempt at keeping him out, listening to Sasuke's curses through the door.  
  
"You do know the door won't stop me." He called.  
  
"Don't you dare come in here, dobe." Sasuke warned. "Why are you doing this to me? You do know you're wearing down my patience, ne? You should be lucky I'll even talk to you with all the crap you're pulling on me." Naruto let out a huff of breath, but avoided the question. He either couldn't figure it out himself, or he refused to admit it.  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Wow... so long. This ended up being eight pages long. Eek. Well... I'm sure someone out there will be pleased with this. Okay, so this wasn't exactly as limey as I was thinking, but so far nothing has been as extreme as I thought it would be. I'm still keeping going to raise it to an R rating though, because from now on it will start to get a little... raunchier. I'm also going to see if I can space out a little bit of Sasuke's torture.  
  
To Teki Star... TEKI STAR!!! There... that's twice you're name's been mentioned. I'm glad you're enjoying this story.  
  
To Athea: how's that for more Naruto x Sasuke moments? No? You want more? Okay!!! ^_^... yes, I plan on making a ton more, so no worries on that.  
  
To Lemmings12: Hm... I'm actually starting to lose my creative juices... I need to keep working on the notes... maybe I'll figure out some more mischief Naruto can have before he has to go back to his body.  
  
To Muchacha: Yeah, Sasuke would be angry, but he's sort of getting over the fact that his best friend (and secret crush) is NOT dead... as you can hopefully see he's gotten over that quickly enough.  
  
To Dearest: HAI!!! Naruto wa sugoi mo desu. Kono shounen wa ore no ichiban bishounen da! (here's hoping that second sentence makes sense... heh heh)  
  
To The La/=/er: I've actually stopped looking at my numbers... they're to high for me to even think about seriously. I actually enjoy reading them more. Quality over quantity. 


	41. Hard

To Ookima: Yush, you were the big 5-0-0. And coming up very very soon, I'll explain why Sasuke doesn't really want to admit his feelings just yet.  
  
And as for that room... well, I'm going to keep on mentioning it until someone starts guessing, or I get to the perfect place to reveal what Naruto's got locked in there. For now... your only clue will be the nickname I've given to that room: Naruto's Room of the Dead. It's up to you all to figure out what is in this "Dead Room" (and no it's not a bunch of dead Naruto clones... lol... and Cindy and Cat... you two can't guess. You already know.  
  
Also, yes, Sasuke had a slight problem to fix in that bathroom. He was relieving himself... and not in the toilet way... hee hee. I really feel sorry for Sasuke... I torture him something awful in this story... oh well.  
  
Last thing: A lot of people mentioned how Pervy Naruto was in the previous chapter. He's not actually. He hasn't come close to thinking that way about Sasuke yet. Hell, he doesn't even realise the implications of how he's touching Sasuke. He will always have a reason for doing the things he does, so if you felt he was acting a little weird, he was.  
  
"And you weren't a cold unfeeling bastard."  
  
That's one of the clues as to why Naruto's doing what he's doing.  
  
DISCLAIMER: Those glasses are mine...  
  
Chapter Title: 41. Hard  
  
When Sasuke was finished in the bathroom, he called out to Naruto, only to find his companion was waiting for him near the front door. Naruto looked up at Sasuke's entrance and rolled his eyes, watching the boy look around for him.  
  
"Are you done so quickly?" He asked, smirking to himself at the self- conscious blush that flared on Sasuke's cheeks. He was also amused when Sasuke turned up his nose and walked out of the apartment, nearly smacking Naruto in the face with the slamming door. If Naruto had had a face to be slammed. "Aww, don't go away mad!" He said, running after the boy, but Sasuke ignored him.  
  
It took Naruto nearly twenty minutes of steady chattering to realise that Sasuke was making good on his unintended threat and ignoring him, just to prove a point. Completely offended, Naruto clammed up and followed his rival back to his house, steaming. It didn't seem to bother Sasuke one bit that Naruto had stopped talking or using his chakra, because he knew that his friend's presence wouldn't disappear for long, regardless of how angry Naruto became.  
  
He smirked to himself as he opened his door, not noticing how deathly quiet everything was. If he'd noticed, he might have been a little fearful of Naruto's method of revenge.  
  
***  
  
Sasuke winced when his head collided with the wall of his bedroom. It irked him enough when his enemies laid a blow on him, but even more so when it was the loud-mouthed blonde, regardless of the boy's lack of skin and bones.  
  
"Stop being an idiot!" He cried, the Sharingan in his eyes spinning wildly to catch the remains of Naruto's chakra.  
  
"You shouldn't have ignored me, Sasuke-chan." Naruto purred out, purposefully. Sasuke whirled around, but the chakra was already gone and he knew Naruto wasn't ready to stay in one place.  
  
"Why are you being such a baby about it?"  
  
"Because you take everything for granted, you asshole."  
  
"I wouldn't know what the hell you're talking about." Sasuke lunged for the disappearing chakra and stumbled into his bed.  
  
"Like that, bastard." The voice spoke again and this time he saw the chakra working right in front of his eyes. Without a second thought, he slashed at the voice but nothing happened. "You take it for granted that you used to have such an easy time defeating me when I had a body. How does it feel now, to know I could probably break your neck and there's nothing you can do to defend yourself?" Sasuke shivered, feeling the familiar chakra fingers trailing up and down his spine.  
  
"Naruto." He breathed out, in warning.  
  
"What? What could you possibly do to make me stop this?" And to prove a point, the fingers moved from his back to his abs, and began ghosting lower. The dark-haired genin froze, his muscles tensing to the breaking point. Every nerve was aware of where the chakra was and where it was heading. Every single inch of him was focused on willing the chakra away.  
  
"Naruto, fuck you!" He gasped, feeling his body being forced to the ground, shirt being shoved upwards angrily. Naruto just ignored him, giving him a taste of his own medicine, with a different style. He held down the squirming boy with one hand and began to poke and prod and caress the pale skin beneath him with his other. He could see Sasuke's obvious erection from his chakra's torture, but instead of being disgusted by it, or even turned on by it, it merely served to fuel his anger even more.  
  
"I thought you wanted me to touch you, Sasuke." He hissed out. "I thought you needed this. Weren't my touches the key to your sanity? And now that you've had enough, you're throwing me away like some rag doll. I will not be pushed away." He snarled under his breath and brought up enough chakra to bite Sasuke on the finger. The pain brought Sasuke to his senses and he finally jumped up and ran down the hall to the bathroom locking the door shut. Naruto had been caught off guard and hadn't been able to restrain the boy quick enough.  
  
Chuckling to himself, he stood up and slowly walked to the shut door. He was about to walk right through the wood when a sound from the other side caught his attention and he hesitated, smirking to himself. From the sounds he could just picture it. Sasuke leaning against the wall for support as his legs began to wobble, bangs damp and covering his glazed eyes, chest heaving in passion, shorts pooled at his feet while he 'relieved' himself with his remaining hand.  
  
Through the heavy breathing Naruto caught a muffled moan, telling him that Sasuke had tried to stifle the sound by biting down hard on his lip. A yelp of pain followed, saying that he'd bitten down too hard.  
  
"Naruto..." Sasuke breathed, softly. "I hate you, you bastard." He muttered another couple of curses under his breath. "I'll bet you're getting some sick pleasure watching me." Naruto laughed.  
  
"I'm not even on that side of the door, Sasuke." Naruto said. "But I can definitely hear what you're doing, and yes I am finding pleasure in your discomfort, although, obviously not the same kind as you're finding, I'm sure." Another groan followed, this time unrestrained, along with a curse to Naruto's name, which sounded more heady than angry. "You deserve every second of this."  
  
"I don't know what the fuck you think I've done, but I didn't deserve that kind of torture." The voice sounded a bit closer to the floor, leading Naruto to believe his rival had collapsed to his knees.  
  
"If I have to live my days in torture, than so will you." Naruto spat, completely unforgiving. "I can't feel a single thing, you bastard, and yet you take me for granted. You ask me to touch you to retain your sanity, not thinking how much it's hurting me for that simple touch not to be mutual. Have you even thought of how much sanity I may have left because of this? I don't remember what warmth feels like. I don't remember what the cold feels like. I don't remember the rain, or a kunai, or even the feel of skin underneath my fingertips." Sasuke's panting seemed to die down a bit at Naruto's words.  
  
"Naruto, I..." He trailed off, not knowing the words to say.  
  
"And you take it for granted that you can still feel me." Naruto huffed. "And because of that, I'll keep torturing you like this until you understand. Until you beg me to stop touching you."  
  
"Dobe!" Sasuke yelled, and the blond could hear the scowl in his voice. "What kind of an idiot are you?" He asked, seeming to compose himself.  
  
"Don't think your insults are going to get you anywhere, ass."  
  
"They're not insults, they're truths." Sasuke retorted. "Why didn't you try and get your body back in the first place?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"How come you came straight to me and started torturing me when you could have tried to fight that damned fox for your body?" The idea made Naruto stop and think for a moment. He was confused. The idea hadn't really been an issue before.  
  
"You heard what Tsunade said." He replied. "I might end up dying if I did that. It's not that easy to overpower a demon's soul, and I wouldn't know the first thing to do."  
  
"The least you could have done was try." Sasuke replied, opening the door to the bathroom. His hair was still out of place and a tiny bead of sweat was drying on the side of his face, while his hands were busy with buttoning his shorts up. "If you're too scared to try, then you deserve to die. I don't deserve to be tortured for your stupidity."  
  
"What am I supposed to do?" Naruto asked, sounding a lot more unguarded than just minutes ago. Sasuke thought about it for a moment.  
  
"How did you lose your body?" He wondered aloud.  
  
"That woman undid part of the seal."  
  
"Then all we have to do is get someone to reinforce the seal with you inside."  
  
"You're one of the strongest people I know. I want you to do it." Sasuke sighed, looking frustrated.  
  
"I don't know what to do."  
  
"Tsunade-hime." Sasuke looked up, slightly surprised that Naruto had said her name respectfully that time.  
  
"What do you mean Tsunade-hime? Does she know the seal?"  
  
There was no reply.  
  
***  
  
The first thing Sasuke did was seek out Sakura and Kakashi. He knew that if Naruto was heading to the Kitsune, he would need their help to secure the demon. Kakashi kept giving him strange looks until they found Sakura and he finally stopped to explain everything to them.  
  
"It's Naruto." He started. "He really needs our help. He's trying to get his body back. He wasn't killed in that blast; he was just expelled out of his body."  
  
"That's impossible." Kakashi said.  
  
"No it's not! Tsunade said it herself; if he wasn't strong enough he'd be killed from the blast. He was! He survived."  
  
"Sasuke, I know you hadn't witnessed much of Naruto's fighting powers with the Kitsune's help, but we have." Sakura watched him sadly. "He was a different person with the Kitsune. Without it, he was just the same idiot we grew up with. His only strength was in the chakra the demon lent him."  
  
"That's not true. That's like saying my only strength is the Sharingan. Before I even developed it I was considered a genius in the academy."  
  
"That was you." Kakashi exclaimed. "You and Naruto were complete opposites."  
  
"Look, Sasuke-kun, we know you're still hurting from the loss of Naruto, but you can't just go avenging Naruto. That monster is dangerous now that he has free reign over Naruto's body. It's suicide."  
  
"Will you just trust me for once?!" Sasuke yelled, becoming frustrated. They both kept silent, sending each other cautious looks. The Uchiha turned his back on them and began walking briskly towards the Hokage Offices. Sakura went to follow when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She stopped and looked at Kakashi sadly.  
  
"Follow him and keep an eye on him." Kakashi said. "Don't let him out of your sight. I'll meet you two at Tsunade's office."  
  
"Kakashi-sensei, what's wrong with him?" She asked softly. He shook his head.  
  
"I don't know, but don't worry. We'll help him." With a poof of smoke Kakashi was gone, leaving the pink-haired kunoichi to chase after Sasuke.  
  
"Sasuke! Matte yo!"  
  
***  
  
Sakura paced outside the office that Tsunade and Sasuke were meeting in. She'd been told to wait outside as they talked in the room privately, but even worse than the fact that she'd been left out was the fact that nothing could be heard from the solid oak doors. She hesitated at the doors again, leaning in closely to see if she could catch their words, but not even the voices permeated the wood.  
  
Kakashi appeared at her side a couple of minutes later and she nearly hugged him from relief.  
  
"How long have they been inside there?" He asked. She looked at the clock on the wall and shrugged.  
  
"About fifteen minutes." She replied. He sighed and sat down on the nearest window ledge. After a few seconds of uneasy silence, Sakura spoke up again. "Sasuke took Naruto's death really hard, ne?" Her teacher looked up and nodded solemnly.  
  
"I think that Naruto was the embodiment of everything Sasuke wanted in his life. The boy was his companion. Always there for support, sparring, hell, I wouldn't be surprised if he allowed Sasuke to beat him up when Sasuke really needed it. He gave Sasuke's after life meaning."  
  
"After life?" Sakura asked, confused.  
  
"Life after he defeated Itachi." Kakashi sighed deeply. "Naruto was the unshakable constant in Sasuke's life. I have a feeling that when Naruto was..." he hesitated on his wording, "destroyed, it was just like losing his entire family again. Mentally, I don't think he was able to handle losing him."  
  
"I wish I could have been that constant." Sakura whispered. "Even if he didn't love me, at least I would still be here."  
  
"I'm sure you are, but you never had the feeling of friendship that they shared. When Sasuke turned you down for Orochimaru, you gave up. I don't think Naruto ever gave up on Sasuke. Ever. Sasuke knew that. Maybe that's why he thinks that now isn't any exception." Sakura sat down beside the doors and pulled her knees to her chin.  
  
"I pushed Naruto away from the village." She muttered. "I killed him."  
  
"He would have gone anyways."  
  
"Maybe so, but I know Sasuke blames me for it."  
  
"If anything, I think he blames Naruto."  
  
Ten minutes later, Tsunade and Sasuke came out of the room. Kakashi looked up and was surprised to see the Hokage smiling with tears in her eyes as she rolled up a scroll. She gave Sasuke a quick awkward hug and wished them all good luck before she disappeared back into her office muttering something about Kotetsu bringing her more paperwork and hiding.  
  
"So are you going to help me or are you just going to stand there?" Sasuke asked, staring the two of them down.  
  
"Sasuke, don't you think you should-"  
  
"No, I don't!" He interrupted. "If neither of you feel up to helping me, then get out of my way. I have permission from Tsunade to carry out this mission on my own." Kakashi stood up and was immediately surrounded by a handful of masked Anbu.  
  
"I'm sorry, Sasuke, but we just can't let you leave." He said, regrettably. "I don't know what you said to the Hokage, however considering the state of your mind, we feel it's best if you don't leave the village and remain under the direct supervision of the Anbu."  
  
"The state of my mind?" Sasuke wondered before realisation settled across his features. "You think I'm insane. You think that just because I believe Naruto is alive that I should be locked in a padded room." Kakashi stepped forward, seeing the wild look that had settled in Sasuke's eyes. They were caught between rage and fear.  
  
"Don't make this harder than it has to be, Sasuke." Kakashi whispered and held out his hands. In them were a pair of glasses and linked gloves. At first Sasuke was confused, wondering what they were for, but he remembered what they wanted to do to him, and realised the padded room wasn't enough for him.  
  
"I'm not wearing those, Kakashi." He growled, stepping backwards. "You are not going to blind me with those." Kakashi took another step forward and shook his head.  
  
"I'm surprised you know what these are." Sasuke sneered at his teacher.  
  
"When they came to take Itachi away that night they had a dozen pairs of them split between each Anbu just in case. One of them told me about them. They're designed especially for the Uchiha clan, aren't they?"  
  
"I'm not an Uchiha."  
  
"Then the Sharingan eyes." Sasuke snapped, much like a cornered animal. He only had one option left. He tensed his muscles and reached for a kunai, allowing his eyes to revert to the customary glowing red of the Sharingan. As soon as the Anbu saw the wheel start to spin they were on top of him, each armed with a pair of glasses and a set of gloved handcuffs. He fought as hard as he could until his world went black and the chakra in his body stopped flowing.  
  
"NO!!!!" He cried, furiously. He didn't see her, but he could hear Sakura's sobs from one corner of the room. He struggled again with the arms that held him down and growled in Kakashi's general direction. "You bastard, Naruto needs our help. MY help! If I don't go then you will be at fault for Naruto's death!!" Kakashi looked down at his student solemnly and took in a deep shuddering breath.  
  
"You need help, Sasuke." He replied. "Naruto is already dead."  
  
~~~~~~~  
  
Yeah, I couldn't help but use the title. Hard. It goes for two different things. One... the hard-on Sasuke got from Naruto... and two from taking the hard way out of Kakashi's offer. Not that he really had any choice. Would you let them just take you away without a fight?  
  
Answers to some Reviews:  
  
Seraphina DW: Yeah, I know Naruto would have gone after some other people, Kakashi, Iruka and Shikamaru come to mind first, but the thing is, he saw how horrible Sasuke took his death, and felt drawn to Sasuke's mourning. Sasuke's reaction to his death shocked him, and he knows that aside from Iruka, no one else was affected this deeply.  
  
Lichan: I just thought it would please you to inform you of the fact that it is now 2:44AM and I still have the rest of an book to read before I even think of sleep. Now I could have had this finished by 10pm but my story distracted me and the length and plot kept me typing until I reached the end of chapter. I have class starting at 8:10am. I hope you are very happy with yourself for causing my sleep deprivation for this evening. (*snickers* I just had to... it's actually true. I started this chapter earlier in the evening and didn't stop until I was finished all seven pages)  
  
The La/=/er: Thanks for the review, again!! I love long reviews so much, especially when people discuss what they think is happening in the story. It reminds me that my reviewers aren't just computer numbers! And yes the room will enter the mainstream plot sometime soon. The SasuNaru will get a little touchy feely in the next little bit... then drop off again, and then hit you upside the head with a lemon from out of nowhere. Hee hee.  
  
Muchacha: I figured it would be very out of chara for Naruto to do that, but I'm playing on his angry side a little bit. I hope this chapter explained his behaviour. He should go back to normal Naruto in a little bit.  
  
And to Hikari no Yami: did you really think I would hold out on posting this chapter until after Anime North? Muahaha. 


	42. Chained

Yes, I know I took two weeks for this, but I've been very busy with my school's production of Footloose. It's over now so I get to worry about Anime North now... To the two people who reviewed and said they were going, Teki Star and Anatra Desylvianno, YAY! I'm going with a bunch of my friends as Ino. We're doing a Naruto group cosplay! We have an Ino (ME!!), Neji, TenTen, Anko, Shino, Hinata (I think), The Trio (being TenTen and Anko's lil brothers and a friend of theirs) and maybe a Kurenai. I'm going for all three days, and you can bet I'm going to drag everyone over to the major group cosplay photo op if they do that again. Come and say hi to me if you see me. My tag should say 'Bad Luck' on it. (Cheers for Gai... watch out... I may glomp you)  
  
Wow... I got my two longest reviews EVER! La/=/er and AkaNoShika. You both made my day. I didn't want this to be some PWP with cheap romance. I want it to be as close to real as it can get. There's no way you'd get Sasuke to admit his undying affection on the first try, no matter how he thinks he can read Naruto. He's still slightly protective of his feelings. You can't blame him.  
  
I'm surprised at how many people put in their input on what they thought Naruto's "Room of the Dead" was. I hadn't even thought about Naruto keeping records of his parents...it's an interesting idea, but as of yet, no one has even mentioned his parents to him yet. There is one person who got the 'room' almost exactly, but I can't say who. You'll just have to see what happens. All I can say is that 99% of that review's ideas are right. It's quite scary, actually.  
  
Answers to other questions are at the end. Read on.  
  
Chapter Title: 42. Chained  
  
If Sasuke had been able to move away from the wall far enough, he would have found himself pacing back and forth. As it was, he could do nothing more than sit on the old futon and wait for the armed guards to come in every couple of hours and either feed him or allow him to use the bathroom. Never, in all his life, did he feel so utterly humiliated before. The walls of his cell weren't padded, that he could tell, but with the gloves over his fingers and the glasses over his eyes he could neither feel nor see where he was. The feeling of helplessness washed over him every so often, only heightened by the fact that his hands had to be chained to the wall, limiting his movements, and he couldn't help but panic as nightmarish thoughts of the blond ran through his mind.  
  
Naruto had been keeping track of the Kitsune's every movement for a while, and he had no doubt that the edge of Fire was where the Kitsune had been spotted last. But without someone to repair the seal on his body, his rival wouldn't last long fighting against the demon. He was getting desperate, being in the cell for nearly twenty-four hours straight, until he received a visitor.  
  
He'd been visited a couple of times that day by Kakashi who refused to apologize and to make sure Sasuke knew he was there, keeping him company, he read a couple of passages from his book, Icha Icha Paradaisu. Sasuke was surprised to hear about the book and had assumed Kakashi had outgrown the old habit of reading the dirty book. He also learned (much to his chagrin) that the novel wasn't quite as dirty as he'd previously thought. There was some form of a plot, but it still had its many smutty bits, which Kakashi thankfully censored, claiming he was 'too young to appreciate the fine beauty in the details of the art of story-telling'. Kakashi soon got bored with Sasuke's lack of response to his remarks and left him alone after that.  
  
Sakura also visited him for a few seconds, but the sight of Sasuke bound up like a criminal was more than she could handle at the time and she'd run out of the building stifling her sniffles.  
  
And so he was left alone for quite a while until he was alerted to company by the shuffling of feet.  
  
"Open this door immediately!" A strong woman's voice demanded.  
  
"I'm sorry, Hokage-sama, but the doctor has ordered us to keep Uchiha-san locked up. He's insane. Not even you can get him out of here unless we're under attack." Tsunade sighed and went up to the bars, not giving up yet. The sight of the blind and angry boy in front of her brought tears to her eyes, remembering how he'd seemed so full of life just the day before.  
  
"Remove those glasses and gloves." She commanded, but was once again denied. It bewildered her that her powers only went so far. She took small tentative steps closer to the bars and wrapped her fingers around the sturdy, cold metal tightly.  
  
"Sasuke." She whispered softly. He nodded his head curtly to show he'd hurt her and began coughing roughly. It was obvious to the Hokage that he hadn't had a drink in a while and he hadn't said a word since he had been locked up.  
  
"They don't believe me, Hokage." He replied when he was able. "But I don't need people to believe me. I need someone to just help." She nodded, forgetting that he couldn't see her.  
  
"What can I do?" She asked.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)(Makeshift for now till ff.n fixes it)  
  
Half an hour later, Tsunade found herself wandering towards the edge of the village on the back of her summoned snail. She's quickly placed a reluctant Jiraiya in charge of the village and ran out of the front gates before anyone could stop her. She couldn't allow herself to linger too long outside of the village, or else risk not only Sasuke's safety in Konoha, but her own return as well. Not too many people would be too pleased to hear that the ruler of their village had gone on a wild goose chase, based on the information of an insane sixteen and a half year old genin.  
  
The storm that had brewed overnight had left behind a layer of soft white snow and clear blue skies, and she smiled, despite her chilled skin.  
  
It took nearly three hours for her to reach the edge of the country, and in the distance she could see the looming red chakra of the Kitsune, levelling buildings and vegetation alike. Her snail nodded its head and disappeared in a soft poof, letting her tumble down the rest of the way into the snow.  
  
"Ten yen says I don't make it out of here without at least a minor case of frostbite." She mumbled to herself, rubbing her clothed arms futilely. She didn't get to worry too hard on her state of temperature when the distant roars sounded nearer than she could imagine. It appeared that the Kitsune was on a wild rampage and whoever had tried to release him had failed to control the power. Pausing to think for a second, she realised that maybe the Kitsune wasn't just some dumb beast that wanted to destroy. If what Sasuke had said was true, then Naruto's body would be limiting the full extent of the demon's powers. Even the fox knew how much the poor body could handle.  
  
The nearing of the fox demon meant only one other thing to her that mattered. Naruto would be nearby.  
  
"Naruto?" She called out softly, wondering who would hear her first, the boy or his body. "Naruto?!" She repeated it several times, walking towards the tremors and crashes until a timid voice answered her calls, confirming her firm belief in Sasuke.  
  
"Tsunade-baba?"  
  
"Naruto?!" She cried in surprise, spinning around before remembering that he didn't have a body. It took all her control not to break down and sob. The boy that was almost like a little brother to her was still alive. "Daijoubu ka?" She asked.  
  
"Aa, daijoubu." He replied.  
  
"Where are you?" A small shove and an imprint told her the boy was standing right beside her. "Are you sure you're okay?"  
  
"I'm fine." He replied, impatiently. "Where's Sasuke? How did you know where I was? Where's Sasuke?" Tsunade hesitated in her reply.  
  
"Uchiha Sasuke has been arrested and placed under the protection of an armed Anbu guard as well as several doctors. I knew where you were, because he told me how to find you so that I may help you in his place." Naruto seemed to forget all about the approaching demon as his thoughts all turned to his rival.  
  
"What the hell happened?! Is he alright? What does he need doctors for?" The questions came at her quickly.  
  
"Stop!" She held out her hands defensively. "Sasuke went to Kakashi and Sakura and they didn't believe in his claims. They, logically, thought that he was hallucinating. That, in his grief, his mind had conjured you up to console him. They had him arrested for his own safety as well as the safety of everyone else. He is alright, however I don't think he particularly likes being senseless and blind all in one go."  
  
"They... they think he's insane?" He whispered. "When I get back there, I'm going to give Sakura and Kakashi a piece of my mind. They won't get away with this." His anger subsided momentarily. "He was right. I should have visited other people."  
  
"Why didn't you?"  
  
"I enjoyed his company." The reply was quick, needing no thought. "He thought he was going crazy too for a moment and I thought that if I left him and wasn't there to answer his questions he would start to believe it. I'm so selfish."  
  
"How could you think that? You were just saying you did it for Sasuke."  
  
"Sure, but I left him just so I could get my body back. I'm the reason he's in there."  
  
"Stop being so melodramatic!" Tsunade snapped, almost wishing she could smack the boy across the cheek. "Why don't we just fix this so you can go back and fix everything?" Naruto stopped his self-pitying and they were both alerted to the ear-splitting wails of the Kitsune, tearing a path straight for them.  
  
"Naruto, what's wrong with him?" She asked suddenly.  
  
"He is trying to use all of his powers as if it was his old body." He softly replied. "It's really hurting the body. He can't last long on his own, and neither can I."  
  
"Right. What can I do to help you?" Tsunade asked, raising her hands to perform any seal she needed.  
  
"Just keep him still for a few seconds. Did Sasuke tell you about repairing the seal?"  
  
"Yeah! That's the reason he sent me in his place. I'm probably the only person in the village, save Jiraiya, who was strong enough to repair it."  
  
"Good, then. Give me five seconds to get back in before you perform the seal."  
  
"Right." And despite the seriousness of the situation, she snickered to herself at the idea of the most powerful ninja in the whole village taking orders from a sixteen-year-old punk.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"Don't just stand there, you idiot! Do something about him!!"  
  
"I'm trying Itachi-sama, but I'm not strong enough to tame even that demon." Itachi and the woman were desperately following in the path of the demon's destruction, hoping to figure something out that would slow the fox down long enough for them to capture him. They'd thought they had an agreement with the Kyuubi, but getting rid of Naruto's soul didn't work too well with the Kitsune. He needed complete freedom from the youthful body or none at all.  
  
"Must I do everything myself?" He asked, rhetorically. She went to reply, but was cut off by a wave of Itachi's hand. He raised his Sharingan eyes to the swell of chakra and began performing the required hand seals, only to be pulled out of the trance by Kisame, his partner.  
  
"Are you trying to get yourself killed, Uchiha?" He asked, tauntingly. A whip-like tail of chakra had landed in the exact place Itachi had been seconds before, demolishing the surrounding landscape in the resulting shockwave. Both Akatsuki members were knocked to the ground.  
  
"This is not our fight." Itachi whispered to himself and let Kisame drag him away from the scene of destruction, leaving the pathetic woman to find her own means of escape.  
  
They were gone mere seconds before Tsunade stepped into the newly formed clearing and looked up at the ominous, towering figure of the Kitsune's chakra, emanating from the small battered boy in front of her. She stifled a choked sob before bringing her thumb to her lips, splitting the skin. She had a job to do and she wasn't about to let her emotions get in the way.  
  
(End of chapter)  
  
To Teki Star: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday... I'm going as Ino so come and say Hi if you see me. Call me Nazo and I'll know who you are.   
  
To Dreamer: Sasuke should be out of this within the next chapter I think...  
  
To TheTrueSilver: The difference between Kakashi and Tsunade, the strongest Kakashi ever saw Naruto was when he fought against Haku with the demon controlling him. Tsunade saw him the moment he mastered Rasengan, controlling not only the Kyuubi's chakra, but the jutsu as well.  
  
To Naruke: Kakashi knows how much Tsunade wants Naruto back. (see her confession of the necklace) and he can't entirely trust her judgement when it comes to Naruto.  
  
To The La/=/er: I adore your reviews. They help me so much when I'm typing up my chapters. And never worry when it comes to long reviews. They help me out more than you might think. Plus I love reading them   
  
To Kakikeibou: Naruto had faith in Sasuke that he would follow. He's also bull-headed and I don't think he would have been able to stand waiting for Sasuke to get help.  
  
To AkaNoShika: You are brilliant. Do you know that? I am so amazed that I completely forgot about the book. I feel so ashamed. But then again, I haven't seen him in the manga for a very long time. I hope this fixed it. His reasons for being cold and distant will be revealed later though. Icha Icha will make a comeback and I'll stop making him so OOC... And about Lee... his story will be wrapped up as well, however he does seem the type to want Sakura's happiness even if it's not with him. I thik he's a lot wiser than he lets other people think... kind of like Naruto in a sense.  
  
Oh and to clarify... Naruto lives in a two-bedroom apartment. There's one for his bedroom, and the other one is the one he's so secretive about. Sorry to confuse anyone.  
  
To lemmings12: Thanks for retelling that chapter (no I'm actually not being sarcastic), it lets me know you absorbed what you read. In answer to your question about Naruto's "Room of the Dead" Naruto isn't keeping anything solid in there. There are no objects in the room itself. Sorry if that confused the hell out of some people.  
  
Thank you for all the wonderful reviews, I'm actually amazed at how much people are willing to give me feedback on this. Never worry with me when it comes to length... I'd rather it be too long than too short.   
  
(Oh, and I'm trying to keep them in character as much as possible... please tell me if I don't...) 


	43. Freedom Has Its Price

I had a feeling this would come up, and it did. Tsunade's animal is supposed to be a snail. I actually did some research... it has a lot to do with that Jiraiya link I found a while back. But it also said that along with Snake, Toad and Snail magic, Japanese mythology had firm standings in bird and spider magic as well. And because Jiraiya has the toad and Orochimaru the snake... it's only logical to assume that Tsunade's animal will follow in the similar pattern of Japanese mythology... regardless of the fact that it has no shell.  
  
And also to clear up a few things about Itachi for La/=/er. The Anbu coming for him was when he murdered the clan. We all know that he didn't show up for another six years, which means he was gone before they had even got to the scene of the crime. So Sasuke only knows about the glasses... he's never seen them in action until now. Oh and... it was a 4kb review. I'm so proud!!  
  
Chapter Title: 43. Freedom Has It's Price  
  
Tsunade summoned her giant snail again. It took a lot of chakra to bring out her friend and she was slightly worried that she wouldn't have enough chakra to seal the two souls together again, but she was reminded of the chakra her snail could lend her if she needed it. The mollusc looked down at the over-powered boy as if to say 'do you really think you can beat me?' and slammed its slimy tail right down on top of the blond head, pinning the demon to the ground.  
  
"You have five seconds Naruto!" Tsunade yelled, praying that the demon would remain pinned long enough. Already the snail's tail was beginning to move against her. Out of nowhere it came to her to wonder if the boy would be able to pull it off in time. She wasn't even sure if he could reach his body at all. "Three! Two! ONE!!" She counted down. The snail released the boy and, with hands moving faster than lightning, she formed the seals that would reinforce the spirals on the pale flesh of his navel.  
  
There was a brilliant flash of light and all was silent. Not even the birds that lived in the remaining trees broke the deafening silence that had descended upon them. Her mollusc friend remained for a few moments in case of danger, but both the Hokage and the snail needed to recharge their chakra and she disappeared in an inaudible poof of smoke.  
  
"Naruto?" She ventured, breaking the silence. The boy was covered from head to toe with Snail slime and after a moment he began to move again. She was at his side in an instant, pushing up the torn fabric of his jacket to see the seal fading away, but there was no way to tell whether she'd sealed away the demon fox or Naruto. The only thing she could tell was that she'd been a little too enthusiastic about the seal and too much chakra had been used to reinforce it. Naruto moaned softly before sitting up, holding his head in pain.  
  
"Did the snail really have to smack me in the head?" He asked.  
  
"Naruto?"  
  
"Ah, Tsunade-baba!" He grinned at her. She was surprised to see his eyes fade from a shocking violet, which had obviously been red a second ago, back into familiar blue. "It worked." He exclaimed happily.  
  
"It did?" She was a little too stunned to have the blonde back.  
  
"Yeah, although not exactly the way you had planned." He stopped for a second, checking his body to make sure everything was in place and in order. "How much chakra did you use?!"  
  
"A little bit more than was required."  
  
"Obviously." He snorted. "I think you might have made us symbiotic."  
  
"What?!" She cried.  
  
"Did you honestly think I was stupid enough not to know what that word means?"  
  
"No, not that. How?"  
  
"I had the fox behind the gates and I could feel the chakra surging through the metal as I fought with him, but we were both holding onto the same bars. The energy sort of..." He struggled with his words. "Fused us together. I think I'm the more dominant one, but he's a part of me now." She nodded and smiled, reaching out to him for a hug. He screeched and jumped away from her.  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"No, no, no." He said. "I can't let you touch me just yet."  
  
"Why not?" She looked at him incredulously, almost as though he'd grown a couple of extra heads.  
  
"I want Sasuke to be the first person I touch." He replied. "I went for so long without feeling anything, and now I need for him to be the first." She nodded. "So when can we leave?"  
  
"It'll take us a good week before we can make it back to the village." Tsunade responded.  
  
"WHAT!?" But I got here in about a day... so did you!"  
  
"Well, you had no body, and I had my giant snail to help me here faster. It will take me a day or so to get back enough chakra to summon her again, unless you can think of something else." He grinned mischievously at her before tearing the skin at his thumb.  
  
"Well I do have a lot more access to the Kyuubi's untapped chakra." He laughed and placed his hand in the blood seal. "Kuchiyose no jutsu!"  
  
To say that Tsunade was surprised to find herself the next moment sitting on top of Gamabunta's head was quite the understatement. The giant toad shifted on his feet and looked up towards the two people on his head.  
  
"I was just getting ready for a bath, you little runt!" The big toad croaked, not really upset. Naruto glared down at the rustic skin.  
  
"Can't you just help me and Tsunade-baba back to the village! It took a lot for me to get you here, baka!" He yelled. Gamabunta grinned.  
  
"I suppose I could do a small favour for my underling just this once, even if he's so rude to Tsunade-hime. It's good to see that you're still alive."  
  
"Of course!" Naruto crowed proudly. "You just can't kill the Great Naruto! How else do you think that bridge got its name?" Tsunade and the Toad laughed together before they set off towards Konoha, ten times faster than the Hokage's snail. If they were lucky they would make it back before sunset.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"I demand to see Uchiha Sasuke!" Tsunade roared, surprising the younger blonde. The guard refused to budge.  
  
"I apologize, Hokage-sama, however the rules state that visiting hours are over after sunset."  
  
"The rules can wait a moment." She hissed. "If you don't move, I will personally make sure you are demoted back to academy status." Naruto would have snickered if the situation wasn't so desperate. He wasn't sure whether or not she could do that or not, and neither he nor the guard was willing to find out.  
  
"Just for a minute." He stumbled on his words, opening the first gate. Tsunade snapped the keys from his hands and ran towards the second gate almost before he's even unlocked the door.  
  
"WAIT!" He yelled after her. "You can't take those! You can't open that door!" But neither blonde cared enough to listen and left the guard behind at the front gate to push whatever alarm he needed to.  
  
Naruto reached the bars of Sasuke's cell first and choked on his harsh breathing. Sasuke, who had no idea the source of the noises, only stared forward, but was tense none the less. Tsunade opened the gate and let the fox boy walk into the cell slowly. She waited outside to keep an eye out for the Anbu who would be arriving any minute.  
  
Naruto sat down on the bed, not surprised when Sasuke whipped his head around at the feeling of the weight on the futon. From within the darkness of his glasses he tried to search for a face to put on the sobbing figure beside him. A snort came out.  
  
"Sakura, again?" He asked. There was no vocal reply, only the feeling of soft skin against his chin. He was lucky enough for the guards to help him shave what little was on his face to begin with. "I don't want you're pathetic tears. They're completely fake." He spat out. "I'm tired of it. I'm tired of you. Why don't you understand that I-"  
  
"You're such an idiot." Naruto replied softly, interrupting his rival. Sasuke gasped softly remembering the voice. It was just the same as when Naruto didn't have a body. He couldn't see the blonde then... couldn't see him now. But he could feel him.  
  
"Naruto?" He whispered hesitantly. He wasn't entirely sure whether or not the voice was real enough to place his hopes in it. "Is it really you? In person?"  
  
"Hai!" Sasuke raised a hand clumsily to where he thought his rival's cheek was and mimicked the tender touch he had felt.  
  
"Can you feel this?" Sasuke asked shakily, unsure of himself. He felt the face in his hand nod.  
  
"Yes, I can. You're warm. You're real." His rival smiled despite his circumstances and felt himself pulled into a tight embrace. He was about to say something when he felt Naruto's chin move as though the boy was about to say something. He could hear the hesitation in the blonde's breath on his ear. "I wanted you to be the first person I touched, Sasuke. I needed you to be that person." Sasuke nodded.  
  
"Well you sure took your time, Dobe." He chided. "I've been in here for almost a week. I thought I'd lost my chance at seeing you again." He smirked.  
  
"Not that you can see much of anything now." Naruto muttered under his breath. "Thank you for sending Tsunade in your place."  
  
"What happened?"  
  
"I was rescued. What more do you need to know?" Sasuke could tell from the wavering of his friend's voice that there was something the boy was hiding from him, and he wanted to know exactly what happened, but he decided now wasn't the time to press the issue. He would just have to remember it for later. "I'm sorry I didn't stay back and save you from this hell hole."  
  
"You should be!" Sasuke pushed Naruto away from him in mock anger. "But of course, your arrival has ruined my plans for a daring escape. I didn't need you to save me."  
  
"But you have to admit, I did."  
  
"How? I'm still in my cell, I'm still blinded and I'm still accused of being insane. How has this changed from before you arrived?"  
  
"Well, you were also alone."  
  
"Hn." He felt Naruto raise his hands to remove the glasses covering his eyes followed by a shout from the guard.  
  
"Don't you dare take those off!" He spoke out, watching the whole scene from the other side of the bars, just out of Tsunade's sight. He stepped forward, raising one hand filled with shuriken, posed to strike, and the other ready to perform any one-handed seal he needed to protect himself. "I won't hesitate to kill you."  
  
"You better hesitate." Sasuke growled in the guard's direction, standing up suddenly, before being pulled back to the futon by the straining of his chained hands. "If you kill him, I won't hesitate to kill you either." The scene seemed frozen for a second before Kakashi burst into the room, followed closely by Sasuke's doctors.  
  
"Tsunade, you know you shouldn't have opened this..." He trailed off when he noticed the blonde sitting at Sasuke's side. He tensed up, remembering that Naruto's body was the Kitsune's.  
  
"Naruto?" He asked, his voice betraying none of his uneasiness about being in such cramped quarters with the notorious fox.  
  
"Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke was telling you the truth." Naruto spoke up. "Because Tsunade was the only one who helped, I was able to return to the village. Now if you're the smart man I think you are, you'll remove the bindings on Sasuke's hands, and burn those glasses. I never want to see them again." He said with such maturity, Kakashi was almost reluctant to believe his eyes.  
  
"I'm sorry, Sasuke." He mumbled, nodding to the guard. The man took the keys from the Hokage and unlocked Sasuke's handcuffs.  
  
"Well, that's a little bit better." Sasuke muttered, following Kakashi and the others out of his cell. Tsunade quickly gave Naruto the hug she'd been dying to give him.  
  
"I could almost swear you were a miracle, you stupid little brat." She whispered to him. "Of course, Tsunade-baba." He grinned at her, turning to look at his rival, who just had the glasses removed from his eyes and still had his eyes sealed shut tightly. "Sasuke, you can open your eyes now."  
  
"Dobe, come here." Sasuke commanded, ignoring what was just said. "You wanted me to be the first person you felt. Now I want you to be the first thing I see." Naruto nodded and stood directly in front of his best friend, holding his shoulders to let him know he was ready.  
  
Slowly his eyes began to open and, blinking twice, Sasuke looked at Naruto as if for the first time. He smiled slightly, almost missing the look of shock and horror that had passed over Naruto's face. He looked around. The look was mirrored on Kakashi and Tsunade's faces as well. Frowning, he wondered what was wrong.  
  
"What are you all staring at?" He snapped angrily.  
  
"Sasuke, how were you feeling when they put you in the cell?" Naruto asked softly, almost afraid.  
  
"I was outraged. They were stopping me from helping you. You might have died if I couldn't be there." Naruto nodded for him to continue. "I fought them every step of the way. I fought my restraints and the effects of the glasses. I couldn't let them keep me locked up. Why?"  
  
"Your eyes." Naruto whispered, choking up. "Your eyes... they're... completely Sharingan. It's not permanent, is it?" He looked from Sasuke to Tsunade and Kakashi. His teacher looked pained and bowed his head.  
  
"It is for him." He whispered and pulled back his hitai-ate. His own Sharingan eye glowed red with the wheel. "My eye will never return to its original colour again, either." He explained, lowering the protector again.  
  
"Sasuke-kun!!" A voice called from down the hall. A rush of pink streaked past the bars, only slowing down when her hands latched onto the bars, to stop herself. Breathing heavily, Sakura peeked into the cell. "Naruto." She said softly.  
  
"Sakura-chan." He smiled back.  
  
"You're alive! We all thought you were dead!"  
  
"I know." Naruto replied. "That's the reason you had Sasuke locked up, ne?" She frowned, and lowered her head in shame.  
  
"I'm sorry. I should have trusted both of you more."  
  
"It's alright." Sasuke spoke up.  
  
"No, I should have believed in you. How could Sasuke-kun be insane?"  
  
"I might have become insane if it wasn't for Tsunade's help." He muttered. "...if I lost him twice..." he whispered to himself and shuddered at the thought. Naruto was the only one who heard and smiled brightly at the admission.  
  
"Well, I'm glad you're back." Sakura exclaimed happily, looking confusedly back and forth between her two ambiguous team mates. She shrugged to herself, not really understanding what there was between the two, and latched onto one of Sasuke's now free arms.  
  
That earned her a glare from both sides.  
  
(End of chapter)  
  
To Nebula: Itachi and that woman were the one's who left the village with Naruto. The woman was the one trying to pass as the Kyuubi's mother. Kisame has been watching from a distance for a while. There isn't anything missing.  
  
Er... I kinda forgot about who was dressing up... never glomped any Gai- sensei... but I did see a couple. You may have seen me... I was one of two blonde Inos. I never saw anyone!! No one came up to me. pouts The only person I saw was another friend of mine from online... where was everyone?!  
  
To Dreamer: Heck no. You'll see an ending soon though. But first, they need to end up in bed together.  
  
To Junkyard girl: Don't worry, the room will be making another appearance soon, and I'll give out as much information as I possibly can.  
  
And also to clear up a few things about Itachi for La/=/er. The Anbu coming for him was when he murdered the clan. We all know that he didn't show up for another six years, which means he was gone before they had even got to the scene of the crime. So Sasuke only knows about the glasses... he's never seen them in action until now. Oh and... it was a 4kb review. I'm so proud!!  
  
To AkaNoShika: You'll be happy to know your review ended up being my longest to date. 5kb. I loved it dearly. I'm so thankful you reminded me about the book. I would have totally forgotten it if you hadn't mentioned it. Not to mention that scene was completely off the top of my head. I'm glad you enjoyed it. And yes, I adore 'real'. I'm trying to keep this fic as believable as I possibly can, while keeping the characters in tact. I hope this chapter explained Naruto's thoughtlessness. And as you can see, Sasuke didn't give up the fight soon enough. It wasn't until I was typing this up that I realised the same thing must have happened to Kakashi. Every time we see his eye it's always in Sharingan mode.  
  
As well... I've always been afraid of making even one of my characters OOC. Naruto I'm not so afraid of, but Sasuke is definitely a character I don't understand enough of. If I get too OOC just tell me and I'll repost the chapter. Did you actually suggest that?! My goodness. I could never take over Naruto cause I'm honestly not that good. Plus, I want to see what the heck is happening with Sasuke and Naruto now. blushes Wow.  
  
To Lightdragon1987: You went as Sakura? Did you glare at an Ino and say "He's mine?" Dear lord... I think I saw you. snickers  
  
And last but not least:  
  
NARUTO'S ROOM OF THE DEAD HINT #238:  
  
Blood. Lots and lots of blood.  
  
There we go. See ya next chapter!!! 


	44. Nicknames

Hey... did you know that FF.N isn't allowing the little stars on top of your 8 key anymore? So (( won't show up... weird, ne? or maybe it's just when you put one at a time... laughs did that show?  
  
And as for our little competition, La/=/er's review reached 6kb... you're currently in the lead. I would have waited for AkaNoShika's review, but I had this chapter done early, and I wanted to get it out to you guys. One more chapter and my story breaks 100 000 words.  
  
Chapter Title: 44. Nicknames  
  
Naruto sighed to himself and took a quick peek out his window, frowning when he realised he couldn't see through the red paint. After Sasuke's Betrayal, and the Orochimaru Incident, and more recently the releasing of the fox demon almost a year ago, the villagers seemed to retain a large amount of hatred towards the young boy, however, unlike in the past, there was more of a physical representation of the anger the village felt. They felt it was necessary to shove him in the streets; to give him rotten food at the stores and, Naruto scratched at the stuff on his window, to paint crude messages for him everywhere it would be inconvenient for him. He sighed to himself, realising he would have to clean his windows again for the third time that week. No one cared to reprimand the culprits and he couldn't bring himself to bother his friends who were busy preparing for a war.  
  
Recently the village had been subjected to a number of disastrous raids by enemy villages, mostly just of the genin class, and Tsunade had been forced to resort to setting up guards to work on patrolling the village to protect the people. At the moment Sand had stopped fighting with Konoha and were in the middle of alliance talks, but there were still rumours that some of their ninjas were part of the raids.  
  
Naruto closed his blinds, opting to deal with it after his shift. He slipped into his Chuunin vest before putting on his traditional jacket. Tsunade had asked him to wear it, for protection if nothing else. He still didn't like the idea of being a level higher than his friends, and wondered if Shikamaru had any doubts when he was advanced so early. At least Naruto was able to stay with his genin team for a while until Tsunade decided to advance them as well. It was only a matter of time. Already, half of the remaining seven genin had been advanced. Hinata and Shino were the first ones, followed closely by Ino and Kiba. Even Gai's whole team were pushed up to chuunin status. Naruto had noticed a reluctance to separate team seven, but he pushed it out of his mind as he arrived at the check in spot relatively unscathed.  
  
He signed in with Kakashi and headed out on his now familiar route. Within ten minutes he should pass Sasuke and after fifteen minutes Sakura would cross his path. He had grown used to it and could almost do the whole route blindfolded. He walked through the market, ignoring the heated glances that were thrown his way. By now they just bounced right off him.  
  
"Why did you have to come back, demon?" A voice hissed close to his ear, but when he whirled around nothing looked out of the ordinary, and just the usual people were glaring at him, unmoving.  
  
"You put our prodigy in a jail cell." Another voice sneered at him.  
  
"You don't deserve to lick the dirt from his sandals."  
  
"I don't know who you are, but I have a job I need to do." Naruto called out to the crowd of people.  
  
"And you do it so well."  
  
"How many more have to die before you will leave the village for good?"  
  
Before Naruto could defend himself, he was pulled into the nearest alleyway and thrown violently against a wall. He was only caught off guard because he was taught the enemy villages tended not to drag off their victims, or attack in very crowded places. He caught the glinting of a hitai-ate and realised it was a Konoha ninja. Looking closer, he found he recognised the angry face staring at him from his academy days. It was one of the boys who had graduated, but hadn't passed the test into the final nine genin like Naruto had.  
  
"What do you want?" Naruto hissed, tensing for a battle. "If you didn't realise I'm in the middle of my patrol. Why don't you be a good little genin and play with someone else in the dark alleyways. I'm too busy." He started off and was shoved back again.  
  
"I have a little payback for you, dobe!" The boy shouted. Naruto's attention was caught and he was immediately at the end of his patience.  
  
"You think you have the right to call me that? I don't recall your name being on that list of nine after the academy. If anything, I should be calling you that. How many years did it take for you to get yourself a team?" The boy ignored the question.  
  
"What's wrong with me calling you dobe, dobe. Or is that a name reserved for the people you want to screw senseless."  
  
"What the hell are you talking about?!"  
  
"Is it his little pet name for you, Dobe-chan?"  
  
"What the hell has crawled up your ass this morning?"  
  
"I'm sure you'd love to take a look personally. I'm only doing what everyone else wishes they could do. I'm going to take you down a peg." He raised his hands and Naruto lost track of the seals performed in the half- light. Smoke filled the alley and within seconds the boy had Naruto on his hands and knees coughing.  
  
"Kage bunshin no jutsu." Naruto coughed out, spreading out and surrounding his opponent.  
  
"Why are your clones wearing a chuunin vest?" He heard muttered under the boy's breath. He just barely caught the rhetorical question.  
  
"Three guesses." Naruto grinned and unzipped his own jacket to show off the real thing. The smoke cleared and Naruto closed his jacket again. "Now, if you don't leave this alley in two seconds, I'm going to show you just what that vest means." He raised his hands and began swirling his Rasengan chakra ball dangerously. It took exactly two seconds for the threat to register in the boy's head and he took off running. Naruto dropped the clones and coughed again.  
  
"You can come out, Sasuke." He said. Sasuke jumped down from the roof where he'd been watching the entire exchange. "How much did you hear? What did you see?"  
  
"Have something to hide?" Sasuke retorted smugly. Naruto crossed his arms dramatically and huffed. "I saw most of it until the smoke filled the back street. What vest were you talking about?"  
  
"It's nothing important!" Naruto exclaimed, feigning cheerfulness and brushed past his friend, out of the alley. Both of them froze as their shoulders brushed one another, still needy of even the slightest touch from the other. Neither questioned it, and neither spoke of it. It was an unwritten love/hate rule between them. Naruto's fingers found Sasuke's and they became tangled in the digits of his rival's before he started back out on his route as thought nothing had happened.  
  
"I'm okay." Naruto exclaimed as he left. Sasuke smiled to himself and nodded.  
  
"I know."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Sasuke was walking along his route when a familiar face caught his eye. The same guy who had been harassing Naruto in the alley was buying a couple of apples for his girlfriend along his streets. He smirked to himself and walked up to the couple.  
  
"Mimura!" He shouted out. The boy turned around at his name.  
  
"Uchiha-kun!" He smiled and waved his hand. The girl on his arm seemed really impressed with the sudden conversation, but remained quiet. "I'm glad to hear you're out of that damned cell. Tough luck about the eyes though." Sasuke narrowed said eyes dangerously.  
  
"Yeah, I'm glad to be free again. If Naruto hadn't come back, I might have stayed in that cell for a very long time."  
  
"Naruto?" The girl spoke up, a look of disgust passing over her face. "He's the reason you were sent there in the first place, ne?" Mimura leaned closer to Sasuke to tell him something in a quieter voice.  
  
"I heard he was actually into you. You know, sexually." He grinned maliciously. "One of the guys told me the big pansy just wanted to lay the great Uchiha for his already lacking reputation. Of course, I told them you wouldn't go near that pile of crap with a ten-foot pole. After all, you're only friendly to him cause you're stuck on his team, ne? Bad luck for you." Sasuke nodded his head, staying quiet for a few moments.  
  
"I heard what you did to him a little while ago."  
  
"Yeah!" Mimura beamed proudly. "I felt it my duty to show him his place. Why should we let some demon little pansy ruin your life. I cold almost swear he sees that name you always call him as some form of endearment. Either he's been dropped on his head one too many times and enjoys being insulted, or he thinks you like him. I couldn't let him go around ruining your reputation. I had to show the dobe that no one messes with Uchiha Sasuke." Sasuke nodded again and growled. In a flash he had Mimura's arm twisted around behind his back, painfully, with his face pressed mercilessly into the ground. The girl gasped, startled, and jumped back. "What the fuck?!" Mimura yelled.  
  
"Did you think you were doing me a favour?" He only got a whimper in response, and so continued. "It just so happens that Uzumaki, say the name, asshole. You don't even deserve to say that much, but say it. Say the name." He pressed harder on Mimura's head, earning a wonderful yelp of pain.  
  
"Uzumaki."  
  
"I didn't hear you, say it louder."  
  
"Uzumaki!"  
  
"That's better. As I was saying, Uzumaki is my best friend, and you are going to treat him like the power he is. He isn't lying when he says he will become Hokage. Do you really want someone like that angry with you because you thought you'd be tough and bully him while he was working?" The boy remained silent, but quivering in fear.  
  
"Uchiha-san, please stop!" The boy's girlfriend spoke up, pleadingly. "You're hurting him." Sasuke looked up and his red eyes flashed for a moment.  
  
"Good." He said, looking back down at the guy. "Now I only have one more thing to tell you before I decide to be nice and let you go. What is it that you call our little friend?"  
  
"Uzumaki."  
  
"Good, you're a quick learner. Shame you took so long to make it to the genin level. What is it that you do NOT call him?"  
  
"Demon?"  
  
"That's one, there's a couple more."  
  
"Pansy?"  
  
"I'm listening."  
  
"Monster?"  
  
"Oh, come on, even you can't be that stupid."  
  
"... D-dobe?" He asked, unsure of himself.  
  
"I knew you'd figure it out." Sasuke laughed, but there was absolutely no humour in the sound, it only brought chills to both boy and girl, as well as the small crowd that had gathered around the two. "Nobody but me has the right to call him that. And if I hear anyone calling him that, or any other sort of insult, I will personally break their neck. Is that clear?" The boy nodded his head slightly. "Now, I don't want you to be forgetting what I've told you, Mimura. That nickname is mine. You use it and you die. Clear?"  
  
"Crystal." He replied, doing his best not to get dirt in his mouth.  
  
"Glad we could come to an understanding." Sasuke stood up and continued patrolling as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened, leaving the crowd to whisper amongst themselves. Mimura stood up and rubbed his sore neck, ashamed of being humiliated so thoroughly.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"Naruto!" Sakura called out to him. The blonde looked over his shoulder and waited for his friend. "Kakashi and the other senseis want to meet with us for extra training."  
  
"More?" He groaned.  
  
"Yes, more." Sakura slapped his shoulder playfully. "You do realise that we're the only team who has all of its members still at the genin level. It's slightly embarrassing. We need all the training we can get."  
  
"Fine, then. When are we supposed to meet?"  
  
"Kakashi wanted us right after the end of your shift, so don't you dare be late."  
  
"But you know Kakashi-sensei won't be there on time. Why do I have to be there on time?" She shot him a glare.  
  
"How much longer do you have on your shift?" She asked, scanning the streets, which seemed to be clearing out for the day. Naruto followed her eyes.  
  
"About an hour and a half or so." He exclaimed. "I just have to check out the meat vendor at the end of the next road and I'm pretty much done."  
  
She nodded and continued on her route, leaving Naruto to finish up with his own. After a couple minutes of strolling towards his last street, he saw Sasuke again.  
  
"Oi, matte, Sasuke-kun!" He called out, running towards his friend. "Did you hear about the training?" He asked. Sasuke nodded.  
  
"You're always the last person to find out anything, dobe." He exclaimed, knowing Naruto didn't have any inkling of what had happened earlier between him and Mimura. Naruto smiled at the nickname he'd grown to tolerate. "I bet you won't even show up!" He smirked smugly, knowing Naruto could never turn down an opportunity to show up his rival.  
  
"Of course I'll show up!"  
  
"Then are you willing to bet on it?" Sasuke asked. "How about this, the loser has to pay for my birthday dinner." Naruto grinned at the idea of a free meal. Sasuke's 18th birthday was coming up in the next couple of weeks.  
  
"Meaning you'll treat yourself and your guests?"  
  
"Only if you win. You'll be my only guest, though. How much money do you think I have?"  
  
"Deal!!" Naruto exclaimed, grabbing Sasuke's hand to shake on it. "Free ramen!" He cheered. Sasuke chuckled softly to himself. If anything could motivate the blonde it would be free food. "See you at the check out station!" He yelled and ran off to his last stop. Sasuke shook his head, bemusedly and continued on his way.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
When Naruto reached the vendor's large shop he cursed the old man for putting his store so far from the rest of the town, but realised that everyone else would puke at the smell of freshly cut animals every single day. The light was left on at the front counter, even though he was supposed to have shut down earlier that day. Frowning, Naruto took a peek into the shop, nearly jumping from shock when he heard clattering in the back rooms.  
  
"Jii-san?" He asked softly, going in closer, searching for the old man who ran the place. A shuriken shattered through the glass of the back door, barely missing his head and landing in the wall behind him. He sighed to himself.  
  
"It just had to be a riot in the last few seconds of my shift, ne?" He muttered foully under his breath. "This better be quick." He pushed open the door and headed towards the noises to see if he could get rid of the genin rioters quickly.  
  
He took a quick look around the darkened room and noticed more blood than there was supposed to be.  
  
"Oh, great." He muttered. "Just what I needed... more blood." He heaved a great sigh and began pushing his way through the maze of hanging meat to the back of the storage area where most of the noise was coming from.  
  
"Here goes nothing."  
  
(End of chapter)  
  
Okay, that was 2574 words, depending on who you ask. I'll see what I can do to make the next one even longer. It should be, because there are a lot of things to cover, but who knows.  
  
To C. M. Aeris Queen of Insanity: I guess this is where I get to explain the whole idea behind this. Like Kakashi, his eyes are permanently in Sharingan. No turning back. But that doesn't mean the wheel is constantly spinning. As well, the ability to sustain the Sharingan the way it is right now shows a boost in his power levels. He's seventeen, and an Uchiha, you'd assume that the prodigy would be able to handle it. He should be able to handle this much. Also, Kakashi might not use his on a daily basis, but he can if he needs to. He just chooses to keep it hidden.  
  
To Lightdragon1987: wow, don't I feel stupid. Naruto's Room of the Dead won't come into play for a couple of chapters, but when it does, I'm sure you'll know.  
  
To The La/=/er: I'm glad you enjoyed this one. I'm surprised at the competition, but I'm also VERY flattered. I love reading your long reviews, mostly because you're not just filling space, you're actually reflecting. It helps me with how/what I say in the next chapters. I couldn't really see any other solution to the whole Kyuubi thing, and I couldn't sit right with the Kyuubi just letting Naruto take over without realising he has no choice. Tsunade is pretty strong... how else would she have been named one of the Legendary Three and Hokage, but she (like everyone) has her limits and flaws. About the whole SasuNaru thing... I think that Sasuke has a small idea of what he's feeling for Naruto (otherwise he is just going with the flow, and leaving the questions for later), but Naruto is too busy to even think of that. Oh, and Sasuke was being held in something of an underground jail cell, used for lunatics, and other people they don't want to execute immediately. The whole cliché thing with 'knowing in his heart it was Naruto' didn't even cross my mind. Course, this chapter ends with enough of a cliché to keep me wincing for a long while. It couldn't be helped. I don't remember Kakashi mumbling... if he did then I apologize. I don't see him as the mumbling type either. And I don't mind demands coming from you. I think you and AkaNoShika have earned it. . Oh... and because I'm not sure how many reviewers will read this, I think it will be safe to say that your guess on the 'room' was the closest out of everything. You actually scared the crap out of me with how close you were.  
  
To Poison Death Tree: GLOMPS I'm glad there's someone out there who isn't obsessed with knowing what it is. I think there's too much hype about it... it's not as dramatic and exciting as people make it out to be. It's actually a really sad secret of Naruto's.  
  
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter 


	45. Lost and Found

Heh heh. I see that Bloodroses23 has entered herself into our little competition with her absolutely wonderful 3 kb review (response is at the bottom), and I might have to agree with The La/=/er's views on cheating, however, AkaNoShika's last review was 14kb... but when it's separated into the two reviews... it becomes approximately 8kb and 6kb, which was beat out by only 1kb. The La/=/er's last review was 9kb. So based on technicalities, AkaNoShika won, but I have a feeling this little competition will be going on for a while, so I'll just keep you two updated until the last chapter.  
  
You know, you two don't have to compete for every review. I'm just happy that you two give me my two best quality reviews. You have no idea how insightful you two are in your reviews. I've had to either change my ideas, develop my ideas to the max or add more ideas to my story at least a dozen or so times so far because of something either of you has said.  
  
Thank you both a lot. Sure, you two give me the longest reviews, but you also give the best.  
  
Oh, and I'm sorry for traumatising you AkaNo... you know what... I'm just going to call you Aka from now on... less typing.  
  
Chapter Title: 45. Lost and Found  
  
Neji was sitting comfortably on the ground, with his back pressed against the tree, watching the remnants of the sun setting. He had been watching Sasuke pace back and forth in front of him, but after a while it became boring and redundant. It wasn't that the tense boy had said much of anything, but the stress was rolling off of him in waves. Most had taken Sakura's advice and stayed away from him, for fear of their lives. Kiba had learned his lesson the hard way.  
  
The canine fiend had been getting really pissed off with Sasuke's lack of interest in their training and his constant pacing, so he went up to him and asked what was on his mind.  
  
"Kiba, just leave him alone!" Sakura called out to him as he walked up to the stoic boy.  
  
"Why the heck are you still pacing, Uchiha?" He asked, placing a hand on the young man's shoulder. Akamaru barked in agreement from his perch on Kiba's head.  
  
"Don't touch me." Sasuke hissed under his breath, just loud enough so the dog-boy could hear.  
  
"Woah, no need to get defensive." Kiba exclaimed and pulled his hand from the Uchiha's shoulder. "We are on the same side, after all."  
  
"Hn."  
  
"Well, what's the problem? Why are you being such a jackass?" He asked, walking at Sasuke's side as he paced, his voice making the insult sound more like the truth than the offence it was.  
  
"I don't need to tell you."  
  
"Fine then. You're just going to piss off everyone else. I was just trying to help." Kiba patted Sasuke on the shoulder and was about to walk off when the Sharingan-eyed boy's arm shot out to grab the offending appendage. "What the hell?!" Kiba yelled in surprise. The group went quiet as they watched the scene.  
  
"I told you not to touch me." Sasuke growled and within seconds Kiba was out cold on the dirt floor. Without a second thought Sasuke continued to pace.  
  
Neji smirked to himself, almost sure why the Uchiha was being so uptight. He looked around to the rest of the boys who'd been on that mission six years ago and they all seemed to have the same idea. Except Kiba, who was sitting to the side, nursing a few bruised ribs. Sasuke had gone a lot easier on him than he obviously could have. Shikamaru stood up and voiced the question that Sasuke seemed desperate to know the answer to.  
  
"Where's Naruto?" He wondered, looking back and forth between the other jounin teachers. Kurenai shook her head and looked to Asuma, but the man knew as much as she did. Kakashi looked up from his book and shrugged.  
  
"He should have been back, but I'm not surprised. It's only been an hour since his shift ended." Sasuke growled under his breath, attracting all eyes.  
  
"I bet him he would not only be late, he wouldn't even show up. That should have been enough incentive to get him here and on time, if not early." Sakura nodded and stood up from her seat beside Ino. The two girls had been chatting and catching up. In the last years they'd both been on a number of different missions and hadn't talked in a while.  
  
"Naruto only had the Konoha meat vendor to check out and he was free for the night, ne?" She looked to Sasuke who nodded.  
  
"Then he should be back." Kakashi stated. "I don't keep tabs on him everywhere he goes. He's a grown up young man. He should be able to take care of himself. Or have you forgotten that the raids aren't anything more than a couple of genin and chuunin."  
  
"What if something happened?" Choji spoke up, stuffing away his packet of chips. "We all know he's strong, but there are some things even he can't go up against." Sasuke frowned and looked to the ground. Kakashi was silent for a few minutes before picking up the sign-in sheet.  
  
"Naruto hasn't even signed out for the night." He muttered to himself. "We'll wait a little bit longer, before anything is done. He might just not want to come to training this week."  
  
"Even I know Naruto's not that much of a slacker, Kakashi-sensei." Neji spoke up finally. "Shikamaru-kun, maybe, but Naruto lives for training. It is his destiny to be something great." Sasuke turned around to study the face of the new voice. Even after more than half a decade, he still didn't know where Naruto stood with the broken Hyuuga.  
  
"How would you know what his destiny is, Hyuuga?" He wondered. "I thought you stopped believing in that destiny crap years ago." Neji shrugged as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
"His eyes say it." He replied. "He believes he will be, and in his eyes you can see the determination that will strike down anything that gets in his way to his dreams. He shapes his own destiny."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Almost an hour later, Kakashi stopped the practice. Even he had to agree that something had happened to the blond. He just didn't miss training altogether that way, and no matter how late he was, he would always get there at a reasonable hour, not like Kakashi's old habits. After a quick check with the night patrol to see if anyone had reported seeing him, Kakashi gathered everyone together.  
  
"I just checked with the jounin guards, and he hasn't signed out, and nobody's seen him on their route. I even checked with the kunoichi who does his route after him and she hasn't seen anything of him at all." He sighed and looked from face to face. Many of the young genins and chuunins, who had been in the academy, had begun to ignore what their parents were telling them about the demon child, and followed their own opinions. There was the odd student, who still didn't like the blonde, and there were those that outright couldn't care less about him, and Kakashi wished sorely that the other children in the village weren't so hateful of his student. Those that knew nothing about Naruto were the worst towards the young man. He nodded to Shikamaru.  
  
"Take another chuunin with you and search the area. I want a report when you-" He was interrupted when the kunoichi he'd been talking to before ran into the meeting.  
  
"Please excuse me for interrupting the meeting, but I just remembered something odd from my route." Kakashi nodded for her to continue. "It might not have anything to do with the missing man, but I remember that the meat shop was still open when I walked near it. I don't normally go near it because it's a little too far from the rest of my route, but I check near the area for anything odd and then go back to my route."  
  
"Get to the point!" Asuma exclaimed. She nodded and bowed in apology.  
  
"Well, as I said before the meat shop was open. I know that the man usually likes to close down a few minutes before the young man before me goes past there, but I could see all the lights still on from inside. I didn't think of it at first, because it was completely quiet, and I assumed that the old man was just doing some late night work or something."  
  
"You assumed?" Kurenai spoke up, shaking her head.  
  
"Yes. But when I heard you were looking for that boy, I figured it might help you in the search." Kakashi waved her off.  
  
"Go back to your route and don't go near the shop, just in case. We'll check it out." She nodded and returned to her patrolling.  
  
"Kakashi-sensei." Shikamaru spoke up. "Do you want me to check that place out instead of doing the entire route?" The silver-haired jounin nodded solemnly. "Take another chuunin with you and search out the area. I want to know if Naruto is there, or if there's any clues as to where he is." Shikamaru nodded and looked to Neji, who walked forward. Neither of them needed a word to be said between them.  
  
"I think I should be the one to go!" Sasuke objected. "I know the dobe the best! What if something happened to him? Don't you think he would need someone he trusts?"  
  
"My decision is final." The lazy chuunin frowned, understanding what Sasuke was going through. He knew he'd be a wreck if his best friend, Choji, was in the same position. He went over to Sasuke before they headed out and put a comforting hand on his shoulder.  
  
"He's my friend too. We'll bring him back." He said, finding anything else would be too bothersome to say. Sasuke nodded. Neither of them needed fancy words.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Shikamaru and Neji headed out to the meat vendor's in the darkened night. The air was stale and humid, and the silence was so uneasy that they were continuously scuffing their heels in the dirt or clearing their throats to make it somewhat bearable.  
  
"So how's Ino?" Neji spoke up.  
  
"She's Ino." Shikamaru replied. There was a few minutes more silence.  
  
"What's going on between Sasuke and Naruto?" Shikamaru wondered. Neji shrugged.  
  
"Why are you asking me?"  
  
"Small talk."  
  
"Right." Shikamaru frowned when his question went unanswered. He tried another.  
  
"Do you think Sasuke knows what he's doing with Naruto?"  
  
"No. I don't even think he knows the truth himself. You've seen those looks he gives me." Shikamaru sighed and silently agreed with Neji. "I think it's more than just hormones, though." They both nodded.  
  
"It's always been more than hormones between them. More like adrenalin." Shikamaru remarked. "Ever since the academy they've been at each other's throats."  
  
"Yeah." Neji agreed. "So you're okay with it?"  
  
"With what?" They were nearing the meat shop. "With Naruto and Sasuke eventually becoming a couple?" Neji nodded. "I suppose it's alright. So long as neither one of them outright kills the other."  
  
"True."  
  
"Are you okay with it?"  
  
"Sasuke and Naruto?" Neji stopped in his tracks for a moment to think. "I suppose so, but I don't like the way Uchiha handles his emotions." He replied. "I'm not sure I trust him as much as Naruto does."  
  
"Jealous?"  
  
"Why would you think I'm jealous?" Shikamaru smirked, before replying in a serious tone.  
  
"Oh, I don't know. Something about your eyes screams 'jealous lover!' to me." Neji shoved his friend away and they peered into the shop, shoving away all signs of their earlier banter. They were on a mission and didn't need to mess it up with carelessness.  
  
They opened the unlocked door and walked in slowly. Neji hung back to secure the door open, just in case they needed a quick exit. The place was completely quiet and even the upstairs apartment the vendor shared with his wife and daughter was quiet.  
  
"Watch my back." Shikamaru ordered, pulling out his weapons. Neji nodded and pulled out a few shuriken of his own.  
  
"Always." They stepped deeper into the butcher shop, Neji and his eyes covering every place Shikamaru wasn't looking. His eyes caught a change in the pattern on the floor.  
  
"Shikamaru!" He exclaimed, pointing to the spot. His partner knelt down to the liquid and frowned deeply.  
  
"It's blood."  
  
"You're kidding." Neji replied, sarcastically. "Naruto's or the old man's."  
  
"Wouldn't know. It might have even been some animal's." Neji scratched at it.  
  
"Well it's been there long enough for it to have been the man's last job for the evening." Shikamaru stood up and went towards the back. He paused at the door. "Neji, stay here and make sure everything with the man's family is alright. I'm going to go back there and see if I can find anything. If I call your name then go as fast as you can to Kakashi to get help. If I just scream for help, then come and help me, okay?" Neji nodded and continued looking around.  
  
Shikamaru slipped into the back room and was assaulted with the horrible smell of rotting meat.  
  
"How can someone work with this every day?" He muttered to himself. He figured the man had forgotten to add the preservatives to the meat before he turned on the cold air for the night. He frowned and went over the thought again in his mind. The room not only reeked, it was warm and sticky as well. Not even on an off day would the old man forget to turn the refrigeration system on at night.  
  
"Naruto?" He called softly. He'd figured that from the lack of noise, if there was anyone waiting to ambush him, they wouldn't have waited so long, and they'd have been making a lot more noise. "Ji-san?" He called out, but neither answered his calls. He kept on his path, holding his kunai ready for any signs of attack.  
  
He had to watch his steps as the trail of blood droplets that had started in the front became larger and thicker spots and puddles until he came upon the purely white body of the old vendor, hanging upside down in the same fashion as his own meat, the last of his blood dripping down his face and onto the floor. Shikamaru took a shaky breath and shook his head. Things had just become a lot more dangerous.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Neji surveyed the room for anything more that seemed out of the ordinary. He took a few tentative steps towards the door, prepared to check the outside for clues when a soft gasp caught his attention.  
  
He stopped, frozen in place. Crossing the room in a couple of quick, silent strides, he slowly peered over the counter to find the old man's wife and daughter dead on the floor. He winced and turned away. Not only had they been skinned in the same manner as the butchered animals, small pieces of them had been hacked away.  
  
Neji squeezed his eyes shut as tightly as he could without giving himself a headache. The gasp was the daughter's final breath and he'd been too slow to save her life. He rested a hand on the counter and tried his hardest to steady his breaths.  
  
"Fuck." He breathed out, disgusted by what he'd just seen. He assumed they had heard the intruders and came down to see what was going on; why that little girl's father hadn't closed up for the night. Neither mother nor daughter had been a shinobi. This was the first time a raid had taken such a nasty turn. This was the first act of war. Unfortunately, Neji knew, it would take a lot more before anything was resolved. There would be more innocents brutally murdered before the villages had satisfied their thirst for blood.  
  
In that moment Neji questioned his choice to become a shinobi. In that moment Neji knew exactly why he'd become a shinobi.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Shikamaru kept going. He knew he had to. The old man was dead, and nothing he did at the moment would change that, but there was a chance Naruto was there. A chance the boy was still alive. He had to keep searching until he found him. He sighed to himself, seeing the back wall of the room just ahead and realising that Naruto wasn't there.  
  
Apparently, the man had run into the back to try and throw off his attackers and escape when they were far enough from the door, but he'd been caught. Shikamaru sighed again when he realised that his failure to find the blonde meant that he hadn't been caught. He nearly smiled at the thought.  
  
He moved around another hanging animal when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. He took a deep breath and cursed himself.  
  
"Where's a fucking block of wood when you need one!!" He yelled to himself, seeing the blond hanging in the same manner as the old man. He only difference was Naruto was right way up and gagged. But the blood was the same. It was everywhere. Naruto had suffered through cuts to his face, shoulders, neck torso, legs, and places Shikamaru couldn't even see from the ropes. His body was suspended from a hook that was connected to the ropes around his chest, but even without Neji's eyes, Shikamaru could see the ropes slipping closer to the boy's neck. He struggled to force his limbs to move, but all it got him was a stirring of his stomach in the worst way. He tried biting on his lip, and forcing the bile back down his throat, but one more look at the torn body crushed his defences and he turned away, heaving.  
  
Never before had he ever felt so sick at the sight of blood. In fact, he'd never been one to get uneasy around blood and gore, but something about the handful of kunais sticking out of his friend's side and the rough angry slashes down his face chilled him to the bone.  
  
He brought the back of his hand to his lip and brushed away some of the bile, standing back up to face his friend. He knew he didn't have enough time to get cold feet. Not with the rising and falling of Naruto's chest threatening to cease. He fought down his nausea and threw a shuriken at the rope holding up the limp form.  
  
Naruto groaned softly when he felt his body drop from its hook and into the waiting arms of his friend.  
  
"Itai..." He mumbled, trying uselessly to move into a more comfortable position. Shikamaru took the hint and laid they young man down on the floor to inspect all of his injuries.  
  
"Where are you hurt?" He asked, unzipping what was left of the orange jacket. In a flash, Naruto's hand had caught his.  
  
"Not there." He whispered, wincing. Shikamaru, frowned, knowing there was something under his jacket that he didn't want his friend to see, but he couldn't decide whether it had to do with an injury or not. He sighed and allowed his friend to guide his hands to more important injuries.  
  
"Can you take them out?" Naruto asked, hands ghosting over the handle of a kunai. Shikamaru nodded and slowly removed the blades. After a couple of years, Shikamaru had managed to get weapon removal down to an art. There was little to no pain, and he made sure it made as little damage as possible. He knew a great many shinobi who had become upset with him after taking a couple of unsightly scars from his earlier methods.  
  
"Thank god you're still alive." Shikamaru whispered, more to himself, as he watched some of the smaller wounds heal themselves. He stared at a spot where a small slash had once been, and realised that, however slowly, Naruto's body had been working none stop to repair his wounded body. He shuddered to think of the condition he might have found the blonde if he'd been there an hour earlier.  
  
Once he was certain Naruto would be alright for a moment, Shikamaru stood up to go and retrieve Neji from the front.  
  
"Where are you going?" Naruto whimpered, trying to keep a hold of the olive green chuunin vest the darker-haired boy was wearing. "Please don't leave." Shikamaru stopped for a moment, seeing the fear so clearly in his friend's eyes.  
  
"Naruto... they didn't... did they?" He asked, avoiding outright asking the question. It took a second for the implications of Shikamaru's meaning to set in before he frowned and shook his head avidly.  
  
"No." He spat, and pulled himself up to a sitting position; despite the effort it cost him. "But don't go." He added, trying to look strong.  
  
"I have to, Naruto. You need a doctor, and everyone's worried sick about you." Naruto hesitated before nodding in resignation. Shikamaru walked off, quickly, towards the front room where Neji was. When he was far enough away to make sure the fox-boy didn't get a headache, he called out to his partner, hoping he remembered.  
  
He waited for a second before hearing the familiar chiming of the door opening and closing. He nodded to himself and went back to Naruto.  
  
"What happened?" He asked, getting straight to the point. Naruto looked up at his return and took in a shaky breath.  
  
"It was two sound jounin."  
  
"What?! But nobody's said anything about the raids being more dangerous."  
  
"No, that's because this was the first one." Naruto coughed a little, covering his mouth to hide from Shikamaru the blood that dribbled down his chin. "One of them had an Anbu mask, but the other one was ordering him around. I tried to do what I could to help the old man, but they were a little too fast for me. They did moves I've never even seen before." He took a breath to calm himself, knowing it was stupid to get riled up over one lost mission. "Before I could blink, they had me tied up like a punching bag. That was the last thing I remember before opening my eyes to find you chopping me down."  
  
"You're going to be okay." Shikamaru exclaimed, crouching beside the blonde in his familiar stance.  
  
"What about the old man? He had a family, ne?" Shikamaru nodded solemnly. "He's going to be alright, ne? He's going to live for their sakes, right?"  
  
"He was dead hours before we got here, Naruto." The normally rambunctious teen's eyes glazed over kind of funny and his face lost all expression.  
  
"Oh." He said.  
  
(End of chapter)  
  
Don't ask me why I ended it there. It just seemed... right.  
  
How's that for length? That was just over 3600. Nine pages long. And even then, I had to cut out one scene from the original chapter. It was supposed to end with Neji getting the others, but I need to keep that for the next chapter to make it flow better.  
  
To Aka: sorry, but my reply to your review was too long... do you think I could e-mail it to you?  
  
To Scorn-Silverstar: What stuff were you talking about? Did you mean the stuff in Naruto's apartment? I'm not sure if it will come up later in the story, but Iruka and Sasuke managed to get another couple of days before the landlord started looking for people to buy the apartment. And as you know, Naruto came back pretty quickly, so he was able to get his apartment back with all his stuff secure.  
  
To Bloodroses23: About the mother, she was the lady with Itachi. They both got away, and for now she's this small insignificant character without a name, but I can guarantee later on that she'll have a VERY big role in Sasuke's life.  
  
To lightdragon1987: actually Naruto became a chuunin only in my story. In the anime and manga he hasn't gotten past genin. It was right after the mini war with Orochimaru. No one actually knows about this except Naruto and Tsunade (and now Mimura), and Naruto's reasoning will be explained when everyone finds out.  
  
To The La/=/er: He hasn't really resolved his 'Orochimaru' problem, and the only way he agreed to wearing it was if it was put under his jacket (as well as a lot of badgering by Tsunade). And about the nickname, I really haven't seen anyone else doing it. That's not to say I'm trying to sound egotistical... it just means I didn't go 'oh, this hasn't been done yet, so let's try it'. I think at the time I was trying to fill space. Heh heh... and the 'Sasuke-monster' sort of took over after Mimura started to bug Naruto.  
  
To Yasai-chan: Please don't get scared off by Aka and La/=/er's competition. Length has never been something I needed. Nor do I care if you just bump my review count. I just have fun reading the reviews, especially if someone's personality shines through it. I'm glad that you just like it. Oh, and criticise me as much as you'd like. I'm always trying to improve my writing. Of course... if it has to do with spelling and such... that's my fault. I haven't invested in a beta reader yet. I don't know where I can find a good one... no worries. I seem to be muddling through on my own. :D  
  
On to the next one!!! 


	46. Bringing up the Past

To Lightdragon1987: Yes, Sasuke still has his curse seal because it didn't go away after Orochimaru's death. If it comes up in the next couple of chapters then fine, but I haven't forgotten about it. The seal actually has its own plot coming up, so that people can have closure with that storyline as well.  
  
Chapter Title: 46. Bringing up the Past  
  
There had been a flood of relief that came out of nowhere when Neji rushed up to the group and announced that Shikamaru and he had found their missing boy, but none felt it more than Sasuke. Like everyone else, he'd looked up at the young man's entrance, but fear struck him deeply when he saw the paleness of Neji's cheeks, contrasting with the lost look in his white eyes.  
  
"Where is he?" Kakashi asked, trying to calm down the clamour made by Kiba and Akamaru.  
  
"Right where we'd been directed to look."  
  
"Is he still alive?" Hinata voiced the question everyone else wanted to ask but were afraid to. A few murmurs went up through the group, some surprised by the girl's boldness, and others afraid of the answer. Neji waited until everyone was quiet again. He looked like he couldn't find the words to answer her.  
  
"Shiranai." He whispered. Sasuke ran out of the meeting area before Neji could continue, not even stopping to wonder about Neji's spooked expression. He was followed closely by their sensei. Neji decided to return to the scene, regardless of the horrors he'd seen there.  
  
They rushed into the shop, Kakashi only pausing for a moment to see the dead bodies of the mother and daughter, before deciding they could wait. He followed Neji into the room slowly, since no one knew where Shikamaru was or if they had company.  
  
"Shikamaru?" he called out softly.  
  
"Over here, please hurry." They heard the lazy reply, loud and clear to let them know they were alone. They followed the sound of the boy's voice slowly until they came to a halt at the sight of the dark-haired boy cradling Naruto's blood soaked body. A collective gasp caught the pony- tailed boy's attention and he turned his head in their direction. Frowning, he tried to shift the limp body in his arms, but was punished with the hiss of Naruto's pained breathing. He was surprised to see Sasuke being restrained slightly by Kakashi's white-knuckled hand on his shoulder.  
  
"He's alive, right?" Sasuke asked, not trusting his ears. Shikamaru nodded slowly. He lifted a hand to brush some of Naruto's hair out of his face and winced when he left behind a sticky wet red trail, his fingers touching the unavoidable gashes on his friend's face.  
  
"He'll be fine, I think." Shikamaru answered, slightly unsure of himself. "His chakra is helping him heal a little faster, and most of the gashes aren't as deep as they were when I found him." He motioned to the rough bandages on the boy's arms and legs. "He needs to go to a doctor to get things wrapped properly." Kakashi nodded and leaned closer to the pair.  
  
"Was he conscious when you found him?" He asked.  
  
"No, but when I brought him down from the ropes he woke up." He nodded to the severed ropes above where he was sitting and the bundle of bloody ropes he'd pulled off of Naruto. "He told me it was a couple of Jounin posing as Anbu. They killed the old vendor."  
  
"And his family." Neji added. Kakashi looked back and sighed solemnly. Shikamaru was stunned by that.  
  
"They're all gone?"  
  
"Aa." Sasuke finally stepped forward. "May I take him?" He asked, his eyes never leaving Naruto's body.  
  
"He'll be in pain if you move him."  
  
"So you'll just leave him here until he is completely healed? You're treating him like he's never felt pain before. He's still a shinobi." He crouched down in front of Shikamaru and held his hands out.  
  
"Naruto, Sasuke's here." Shikamaru whispered to the blond before handing the young man over, against his better judgement. Sasuke saw the slight hesitation.  
  
"I'm his closest friend. He needs me." He cradled Naruto's body to his chest and was surprised to feel the boy shifting, despite his injuries.  
  
"And Sasuke needs me." He muttered, his voice muffled by Sasuke's shirt. He snuggled deeper into the warmth Sasuke offered.  
  
"Can you still feel me?" Sasuke asked, tentatively. Naruto rolled his eyes and shifted again so he could look up at his rival. The blood red eyes were still there, but they held more compassion in them than he was used to seeing in the Sharingan. He smiled briefly before remembering the stupid question.  
  
"Of course I can feel you, teme." He replied. "I'm not dead yet."  
  
"You could have been."  
  
"What's with the depressing act? I'll be fine eventually."  
  
"Sure."  
  
"Of course, now help me up!" Naruto tried to sit up in Sasuke's grasp, ignoring the brief pain that rocketed through his head. Sasuke stood up, ignoring his friend's request and they started heading back to the hospital. "Hey! Put me down! I can walk you know!" he protested, making it difficult for Sasuke to hold onto him.  
  
"Fine, dobe." He lowered Naruto's feet to the ground and tried to hide the self-satisfied smirk that threatened to show when the blond wobbled a bit on his feet before collapsing back into his arms. Naruto wrinkled his nose in distaste and sighed. "So you can walk, ne Dobe? Now where did I hear that before?" They both froze, in remembrance of the last time Naruto had tried to walk when he clearly couldn't. Shikamaru and the other's continued walking, unaware of the brief flash of horror that crossed both shinobis' faces, but turned around when they heard the sound of one of them heaving.  
  
"Baka, why did you have to bring that up?" Naruto spat out, while on his hands and knees, trying to also spit out the foul taste in his mouth. He tried, valiantly, to push his rival's helping hands away, but gave up when he realised they wouldn't give up and allowed himself to be pulled into Sasuke's arms.  
  
"Sumimasen." Sasuke whispered, hugging his best friend tightly. Naruto smiled briefly, forgiving Sasuke instantly and leaned his head on the young man's shoulder. The dark-haired ninja kept one arm around Naruto's back and curled the other under the boy's legs, picking him up easily.  
  
As they continued out of the meat shop, Naruto surveyed the damage over Sasuke's shoulder. He frowned, realising that there was even more blood in the front than he remembered.  
  
"Shikamaru-kun, did you have to fight the jounin when you got here?"  
  
"No." Came the reply before the question had time to sink in fully.  
  
"Then why is there so much blood?" They all looked around as the damage set in. Naruto didn't wait for an answer to his first question as another popped into his head. "The vendor had a wife and daughter, did you make sure they were okay before you came for me?" Neji shook his head.  
  
"Naruto you should be resting, not worrying about them."  
  
"You did check on them right?"  
  
"Yes." Neji replied slowly, deliberately not expanding his answer. Unfortunately Naruto saw right through it.  
  
"Neji-kun, they're alright, ne?" At the long-haired young man's silence he grew pale and studied the blood patterns on the wall.  
  
"Oh." He whispered. "Forgive me, Jii-san, for not being strong enough." Sasuke closed his eyes, knowing he was the only one to hear Naruto's choked apology. It hurt him to know that Naruto had started blaming himself for casualties that weren't his fault, and he voiced his concern.  
  
"You couldn't have prevented this, Naruto." He said, his lips close to his friend's ear.  
  
"I could have tried."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Within hours of entering the hospital, Naruto was released, more or less in one piece, with nothing but the really deep wounds still healing. Sasuke had offered to help Naruto back into his apartment, but Naruto remembered that his windows from that morning were still covered in paint, and he didn't want anyone to become worried over him.  
  
Sitting down on his bed, he glanced at his bandaged hand and remembered his vow from years earlier. He'd said he wouldn't let himself freeze up again, but the promise was much more than that. He didn't want to be the one everyone had to help. Had to save.  
  
He flopped back and growled at himself. He couldn't even save the old man and his family. What good would it be trying to tell himself he was strong when he couldn't prove it? He was nothing but a boy living in the shadow of a monster, if the paint was any indication.  
  
Sitting up on his bed, Naruto focused his eyes in the darkness, looking for the familiar glint of hard, cold metal. He spotted a kunai embedded in the wall from one of his earlier training sessions and walked over to it. Pulling the weapon out of the wall, he pondered over his actions. A part of him wanted to throw the kunai out the window and never look at the thing again, disgusted with even the thought of what he wanted to do. But another part, a much darker part reminded him that he wanted it. He deserved it for not helping the vendor and his family.  
  
In the middle of his debate, he yawned and realised it was late and he was tired and if he was so easily swayed by sleep, he didn't really want to injure himself any further. Lazily tossing the kunai back onto the wall, he went back to his bed, taking off his jacket and chuunin vest. He'd been lucky that night. Tsunade had overseen his treatment to avoid anyone but the two of them to know about his advancement. There were too many questions to be asked, and he didn't want the past dredged up three times in one night. He was thankful that his secret had so far stayed that way. He didn't know how he would survive if the same people who'd painted his windows learned of the truths about what happened between him and Orochimaru.  
  
He let his body collapse, face first into the mattress, sighing into his pillow. He laughed at himself. There he was, not wanting anyone else to bring up events from his past and yet spending his whole life reliving the moments over and over. What a hypocrite he made. With one last sigh, he curled up into himself and pulled the covers over his body. It was coming up on June, but there was still a cool breeze, and Naruto was never one to follow logic and keep his windows closed.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
He groaned when he opened his eyes, the scratches not doing anything to lessen the headache he was getting. The blood red silk sheets swimming in and out of his vision before he raised a hand to rub the sleep from his eyes. He looked at the sheets again and nearly purred at the soft touch on his bare legs, saving questions for the moment. He pushed back the covers, hesitantly, and slipped out of the large bed. He frowned, realising, not only that the bed wasn't his, but neither was the room. There were candles everywhere and they cast eerie shadows over the crimson fabric.  
  
"But I just fell asleep!" He whispered to himself, looking out the window to a stunning view of the village he remembered from somewhere else, but the exact place eluded his mind. He sighed, figuring it wasn't important if wasn't worth remembering.  
  
"I see you woke up, Naruto-chan." A voice whispered at his ear, not only chilling him to the bone with its silky smoothness, but also scaring the life out of him with its closeness and the jolt of reality it brought. That voice made him remember things he wished never happened.  
  
"Orochimaru." He mumbled, closing his eyes as if in pain. "You know that he'll save me, and together we'll beat the shit out of you." The snake laughed in his ear, running a slender finger up Naruto's thigh and over the curve of his hips.  
  
"Well, then I suppose I'll just have to make sure you pay for that in advance." He wrapped his arm around the boy's stomach slowly, slipping one finger at a time underneath the elastic band of his boxers. They hesitated for a moment. "Unless you want to tell me where Sasuke's hiding? I'll be more than happy to let you go if you'll just tell me where he is." Naruto tensed and sent his elbow into the sennin's stomach, stepping out of his embrace.  
  
"One, I will never betray Sasuke to you, ever. And two, you actually expect me to believe you'll just let me go if I give up Sasuke to you?" Orochimaru laughed.  
  
"You are far smarter than I would have believed. Tell me something, do you love Sasuke?"  
  
"No." Naruto exclaimed stubbornly. "Not that you have any right to know."  
  
"Some how I don't believe you."  
  
"You are one sick fuck, Orochimaru." Naruto spat, trying to hide his fear of the older man. His eyes frantically scanned the room, but there was nothing that he could find to help him.  
  
"Is that an offer?" The lecherous gleam in the snake-summoner's eye caused Naruto to wrinkle his nose in disgust.  
  
"You're worse than the ero-sennin!" He exclaimed.  
  
"Ah, Jiraiya-kun. For someone who's supposed to be a lot like him, you're acting nothing like him."  
  
"Jiraiya-san would never have stood for this!" Naruto yelled, gaining some confidence in himself at the thought of his mentor. Orochimaru merely laughed.  
  
"No, you're right. Jiraiya wouldn't stand, he'd already be on the bed." And with a slight push, Naruto toppled backwards onto the bed he'd woke up in. "I thought you said you could handle anything Sasuke could." The blonde shivered at the idea of Sasuke in his place. It made him feel a little better to know he'd saved his rival this kind of shame. "Do you really think I would have spared Sasuke's body? You have to admit any man, straight or otherwise, would have a tough time saying no to that fine body. Come on, you can admit it."  
  
"I'm not admitting anything, asshole." Naruto snarled, scooting a bit further back on the bed. Orochimaru let out another laugh as thought it was all nothing but a big game to him. It came as a shocking surprise when Naruto felt his face whip to the side from the force of the sennin's unforeseen fist. He hadn't even seen the man move.  
  
"You would be wise to answer me the way I want in the little things, or else face the consequences. I've already resigned myself to the fact that you won't tell me where Sasuke is until you've been thoroughly broken, but don't make me waste my energy beating these answers out of you." He cracked his knuckles, preparing to deliver another blow when Naruto mumbled something.  
  
"I'm sorry, I missed that. Speak louder, whore." Naruto flinched at the insult, but figured it could have been worse. He cleared his throat and tried again.  
  
"Yes, I said. He's beautiful." Orochimaru's eyes lit up in delight.  
  
"Who's beautiful?"  
  
"Sasuke is."  
  
"And I'm sure he just makes you want to screw him the way I'm going to screw you in a minute."  
  
"I don't know why a bastard like you keeps thinking I want Sasuke-yarou. Even if I did want him, I would never rape him. Ever." Orochimaru climbed gracefully onto the bed, making Naruto shift even closer to the headboard.  
  
"Oh, this isn't rape, Naruto. You're nothing but my fuck-toy. A prelude to the real thing. You're not worth raping. Sasuke on the other hand has everything you'll ever want." It was almost as though Orochimaru could read his thoughts, and the notion scared Naruto, and just like any cornered animal, Naruto did the only thing that came to mind, he attacked.  
  
A flurry of teeth and nails stretched towards Orochimaru, but the man was far too quick and, without even having to think about it, he had Naruto pinned to the bed.  
  
"Nice, Kyuubi-san." Orochimaru hissed out delightfully. "I was wondering when you'd come out to save this pathetic body. You are so many people's ultimate dream, and here I have you at my mercy." He laughed, letting go of Naruto's arms to rip a couple of pieces of silk. The boy tried to fight the snake off of him, but before he had landed a handful of punches, his fists were tied above his head. Orochimaru smirked at his stunned expression.  
  
"Well, we can't have you trying to hurt me or escape." Naruto futilely tried to pull the bindings loose, but the knots were secure. "One last chance, where are you hiding Uchiha Sasuke?" Naruto glared up at the man straddling his waist and, with his final bit of courage, spat in his eye.  
  
"Go fuck yourself!" He cried.  
  
"Actually, I'm going to fuck you, usuratonkachi." Orochimaru wiped the spit from his face calmly, but even Naruto, freaked out as he was, could see that the humour had left his snake eyes. "You're going to wish you hadn't defied me. I'll have you crying the safe house location in the throes of passion. I'm going to make you beg me to continue."  
  
"I would never lower myself to beg you for anything, much less that. Plus, if I didn't know any better, you're all talk and no action." His raw nerves couldn't handle the suspense and he just wanted it all over with.  
  
"What if I looked like this?" Orochimaru asked, performing Henge no jutsu. "I'm sure he would have you begging for more in no time." Naruto squeezed his eye's shut, trying to block out the man above him.  
  
"You can't do this to me." He whispered. Orochimaru sneered.  
  
"Of course I can, and will!" He thrust a hand beneath Naruto's boxers, roughly, causing Naruto's eyes to shoot open. It was the worst mistake Naruto thought he'd ever made as a forbidden moan left his lips at the sight of the boy on top of him.  
  
"Sasuke..."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"Naruto?" Sasuke asked, looking at the shivering boy in front of him. The blonde was wearing nothing but his orange pants, still covered in the blood from earlier in the night, and was clutching a kunai to his bare chest as though it was his last hope. "What are you doing here?" Naruto looked up at the question, his eyes reflecting his own confusion. Sasuke ushered the boy inside after noticing another shiver run down his spine.  
  
"I don't know." He whispered, allowing himself to be brought into the warmth.  
  
"You have to have a reason for coming to my house at two in the morning." Naruto stood up straight and shook off Sasuke's comforting hand on his arm.  
  
"You never used to." He was starting to feel that the visit was a bad idea. "I should go, this was stupid. I'm sorry for waking you, I was just scared." Sasuke frowned and stepped in front of his rival, blocking his path to the front door.  
  
"What were you afraid of?"  
  
"Why should I tell you, asshole?" Naruto retorted, getting defensive.  
  
"Dobe, stop being a senseless prick and tell me what's wrong." Sasuke sighed.  
  
"It was nothing. Just a nightmare."  
  
"What kind of nightmare?" He stepped closer to Naruto, showing his support. His friend hesitated before lowering his eyes to the ground.  
  
"It was the night Orochimaru..." He trailed off, but Sasuke got the idea and wrapped Naruto in a tight hug.  
  
"He's gone now."  
  
"But I still remember!!!" Naruto yelled, trying to fight off his tears again. "You don't know what he did to me! I thought I'd proved myself, but I'm nothing but a whore." Sasuke winced at Naruto's words, but didn't make any move to let go.  
  
"You're not a whore, Naruto." Naruto's laugh was hollow.  
  
"I am. I was all set to fight until I couldn't move, but then he did Henge no jutsu and I couldn't think straight."  
  
"He raped you!" Sasuke protested, trying to ignore what Naruto was telling him.  
  
"How can you call it rape when I enjoyed it?! There!!! I said it!!! I wish to god I could take it all back, but when I saw that face above me something snapped." Everything went quiet for a moment as Sasuke let Naruto's words settle in.  
  
"You said he used Henge no jutsu?" He felt Naruto's head nod in agreement. "Then whose face did you see?" Naruto remained quiet as visions of the consequences of answering ran through his mind. Sasuke waited patiently for a few minutes before deciding to guess. "Was it Sakura?" There was no reaction. "Hinata?" Still nothing. Sasuke thought for a moment. "Neji? Shikamaru? Kakashi?"  
  
"No." Naruto exclaimed, holding in a smirk at the absurd suggestions. "Have you ever heard how much like the Three Legendary Nin team seven is?" Sasuke nodded, deciding to stay quiet, letting Naruto answer in his own time. "Of course you have, Jiraiya-san told us when we were under attack from Orochimaru's sound. Orochimaru saw himself in you, and Jiraiya in me." He hesitated again.  
  
"Please don't shut me out." Sasuke said. Naruto looked up and nodded, pushing himself out of his rival's embrace.  
  
"Tsunade told me one day that Jiraiya and Orochimaru had been lovers at one time." Sasuke frowned, not understanding where this was headed. "When Orochimaru betrayed the village Jiraiya was hurt the same as I was when you left."  
  
"But I came back because of you, Orochimaru didn't." Sasuke exclaimed.  
  
"But because of this, I think that he saw too much of Jiraiya in me... and because he saw himself in you..."  
  
"He transformed into me?" Naruto nodded solemnly. "And you enjoyed it because of that?" Naruto looked up at Sasuke frantically.  
  
"No! I mean, yes, but it's not what you think! I didn't mean to-" He was cut off by his best friend and rival pulling him back into a warm hug. "I didn't mean to enjoy it." He muttered into Sasuke's neck.  
  
"I know."  
  
"Don't leave me." Naruto whispered softly. "You can hate me all you like, but please don't leave me."  
  
"Never, Kitsune."  
  
(End of chapter)  
  
Whoo hoo!!! It's my longest chapter yet! And there's a funny story behind it... it was actually just pulled out of my ass. I needed a transition scene or two to get from 45 to 46, and I intended to have Sasuke find Naruto, Naruto to have a quick little nightmare and move n to bigger and more important things... and then came the actual nightmare... and so on and so on... and these guys just didn't want to give Hinata her stage time, so yeah. The real content for chapter 46 will be pushed back until 47 .  
  
Answers:  
  
To Tsukineko9: I hadn't planned on editing my chapters yet, but yes the material does plan to get a higher rating than R so I figure I'm going to need a place to put my fic where NC-17 is okay. It's not yet, but It's coming in the next chapters.  
  
To Mia: huggles to death YOU'RE SO SMART!!!!! WAHAHAH!!! Yes, Sasuke's eyes have everything to do with those earlier dreams.  
  
To Jade Tatsu: I apologize for the time shifts. I agree with you, that they're too unorganised, but I can't stand filler. I hope this is better for you. Everyone is confused with the whole Kyuubi thing, so I guess I'm going to have to explain it in a later chapter.  
  
NOTEOh, and about the Sharingan, just so everyone knows, I've made it so the redness doesn't use up chakra. It's the spinning of the wheel that requires the energy. It's also a symbol that Sasuke's chakra is powerful enough now that he can spin the wheel almost instantaneously. NOTE  
  
Itachi wasn't killed off... he ran away with Kisame and that woman.  
  
To Naruto118: The reason I didn't want to put in the fight scene is because there will be lots of action later on. You didn't need to see what they did, only the after-effects of it.  
  
To CuteMooglez: Yes, the serious NaruSasu stuff will be starting really soon.  
  
To Seph Lorraine: The war was started by Orochimaru who wanted to gain control of Konoha. It's being continued by his village in honour of him, and they're slowly getting allies. Sand is supposed to be an ally of Konoha, however due to a shift in leadership, they signed a treaty with Sound instead. This ending was better?  
  
To Aka: There's nothing between Neji and Shikamaru. It was just friendly banter. Score so far: AkaNoShika is in the lead with 11kb.  
  
To the La/=/er: short is good too!  
  
Anything that I don't answer means it'll be explained later on in the story. 


	47. A Great Day

Whee! Fluffy chapter!!  
  
To everyone: I'm really sorry about the spacing of the stories from chapter 42 and up... ff.n has been deleting all of my asterisks, so that's the reason you may have had some troubles reading and following. I'm so sorry for not going over the chapters before I posted them. I'm going to have to start doing that from now on. You can never trust ff.n anymore. I think I've fixed it... but you can never tell... I've made sure this one doesn't have the same problem.  
  
Chapter Title: 47. A Great Day  
  
"Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed, knocking roughly on his rival's door. It was only a couple of days since his nightmare and already something good had happened to brighten his life. "Come on, you idiot, open up! I have a surprise!"  
  
"Naruto, what is it?" Sasuke asked, opening the door. He rubbed his head, wondering if this was the first time Naruto ever woke up earlier than he had to. Neither of them needed to patrol as they were still genin.  
  
"I woke up this morning because of my nightmares again and the greatest thing happened!" Sasuke was perplexed. Normally the dreams haunted the young man, but it seemed as though they were the farthest thing from his mind.  
  
"Would you stop wasting my time, dobe?" He growled out. "Get to the point!"  
  
"I met up with Hinata in the market place and she asked me out!"  
  
"Really?" Sasuke asked, not believing his ears. "Are you sick or something?" He asked and placed a palm on the blonde's forehead. "You should know that Hinata would never be so forward."  
  
"But she was!" Naruto shoved the hand away, too happy to take offence to anything his rival was saying. "We're going on a picnic, today, for lunch after her patrol!"  
  
"And you like her? Are you sure she likes you?" Sasuke frowned, his eyebrows furrowing.  
  
"Of course! I've always liked Hinata. She's cute and maybe a little bit on the shy side, but they always say that opposites attract, ne? And she told me that she really admires me and wanted to ask me out for a long time!"  
  
"Isn't this a bit sudden?"  
  
"What do you mean by sudden?"  
  
"All of a sudden, out of nowhere, Hinata's asking you out on a date. Are you sure that's what it was?" Naruto scowled, getting the feeling that Sasuke was just trying to ruin his day.  
  
"We've hung out a couple of times, and she told me herself. 'Naruto-kun, would you... ano... I would much like to go on a date with you' just like that." Naruto exclaimed defiantly, imitating the girl's soft voice. "I thought you'd be happy for me."  
  
"Of course I am." Sasuke sighed, realising that he would be better off talking to a weed in his backyard. "So are you serious about dating her?"  
  
"She only just asked me out, baka!" Naruto laughed, regaining his cheer. "But who knows. We all need a little bit of normalcy, and maybe for me it's Hinata in my life." He pushed his way into Sasuke's house, and began dancing around while trying to ignore the grim look on his best friend's features. When he couldn't take it any longer, he stopped and glared at the young man. "What's wrong with you? Wake up on the wrong side of the bed?" Sasuke looked up and shook his head.  
  
"It's nothing." Naruto shrugged it off, not wanting to think about Sasuke's mood swings too long. He'd come there for another reason besides telling his friend the good news.  
  
"Can you help me make something for the picnic?" Naruto asked. "As you know, the only thing I'm a master chef in is Ramen cooking and I'd really like to impress her."  
  
"Why should I help you? Go read a cook book." Sasuke shook his head and made his way to the kitchen for a drink.  
  
"PLEASE!!!" Naruto begged, running after the young man. He tugged childishly on the hem of his shirt and began whining. "If you don't then it will ruin the only chance I have to impress her, and you know that the first impression is always the most important."  
  
"You've known Hinata for years, usuratonkachi." Sasuke growled. The blonde brushed off the comment and continued pouting.  
  
"But never as a lover!" This exclamation made Sasuke wrinkle his nose in disgust, his quest for a drink forgotten.  
  
"I did not need to know that detail. You've only just started dating her and your mind is already halfway through the gutter."  
  
"Sasuke!" Naruto yelled in protest. "I didn't mean it that way, jerk."  
  
"Sure you didn't."  
  
"Are you going to help me or not?"  
  
"I suppose so, so long as I don't hear any more details of what you plan on doing with Hinata when you get her alone." Naruto laughed.  
  
"Pervert."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Sasuke peered over Naruto's shoulder as the blonde spooned out another piece of cookie dough to put onto the cookie tray that would be put in the oven when the other cookies were ready. His rival tensed at the contact and took a swipe of the chocolate chip dough and tasted it.  
  
"You're supposed to be cooking it, not eating it." Sasuke said. Naruto smirked, knowing his friend would say something about it and smeared another swipe down the young man's cheek, over his shoulder. For a moment Sasuke looked shocked, but a smirk replaced his look of horror and he picked up some of the dough himself.  
  
"You really do have a death wish, don't you?" He retorted, stepping back from Naruto.  
  
"You're the one criticizing my cooking."  
  
"You came to me, remember?"  
  
"I can bake cookies, dumbass."  
  
"That's not what you told me." He shoved a small piece of his arsenal into Naruto's hair. Naruto gasped dramatically and picked up one of the rice balls they'd made a little earlier. Sasuke backed up slowly, hoping he was wrong about what Naruto was threatening to do. "Dobe, put that down."  
  
"Why should I?"  
  
"Do you want Hinata to starve on your picnic?"  
  
"She won't miss one onigiri." Naruto tossed the rice from one hand to the other thoughtfully. Sasuke grinned and picked up one of his own.  
  
"What about two?" Thus began their food fight.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
One package of dough and half a bag of rice later they sat on the floor of the kitchen panting, back to back, surveying the damage. Both were covered, head to toe with uncooked and cooked rice, and raw cookie dough, and were completely drenched. The cookies that had been in the oven came out burnt and the others had been forgotten or used in the battle.  
  
"Do you think the chocolate will come out of the walls?" Naruto asked softly. Sasuke chuckled.  
  
"What about our clothing?" Naruto shrugged.  
  
"You say that like you've never been dirty in your life." He scoffed, shaking his hair of the uncooked rice that Sasuke had thrown at him. The rice fight had started when Naruto casually picked up a handful of the granules and commented that at western weddings birds used to eat the rice thrown, and after a sip of water, exploded as the rice expanded.  
  
He had tried (and failed) to shove his handful down Sasuke's throat along with a glass of water to see if Sasuke was anything like a bird. Water and rice had flown everywhere in the ensuing battle, neither one wanting to give up an advantage.  
  
"I've never been cookie-dough-dirty before." Sasuke laughed and Naruto marvelled at the sound. It was rare that the dark-haired teen smiled and even rarer to hear him laugh naturally, something he only ever remembered Sasuke doing in his presence, and his alone. He turned around to look at how much he'd gotten stuck to Sasuke, and was proud to note that they seemed about equal in mess. He could even see the first swipe of chocolate chip cookie dough still smeared on his rival's cheek. Where other dough bits had pieces of dry rice stuck to them, that one smear had remained rice- less. He leaned forward and licked at the cookie batter until it had disappeared.  
  
Sasuke went rigid at the feel of the sandpaper-like wetness running the length of his cheekbone, but relaxed at the second lick, raising his hand to the nape of the young man's neck. He didn't say a word until his rival had finished and sat back looking into his eyes purposely.  
  
"Well at least I'm not poisoned." He murmured softly, chuckling nervously. He unconsciously licked his lips and smiled sheepishly. "Stop looking at me like that. At least you're a little cleaner." Sasuke snapped out of his daze and snorted.  
  
"Who knows where that tongue has been." Naruto shot him an offended look before crossing his arms over his chest and pouting childishly.  
  
"You're just jealous." Naruto stuck out his tongue.  
  
"Of what?" Sasuke asked incredulously. "That you licked me?" Naruto frowned, obviously not really knowing what he'd been saying, replying on instinct. He shrugged and nodded. "I am not jealous!" Sasuke leaned over, on his hands and knees, and to prove his point, latched on to Naruto's collar bone, sucking on the smear of dough the blond had on his neck.  
  
Naruto sucked in a breath quickly and leaned back, against the nearest wall. He followed Sasuke's earlier example and raised his hands hesitantly to his rival's head, not sure if he wanted to shove him away or hold him closer. He stifled back a moan, amazed at the pure pleasure he got out of the simple act. His mind almost melted, and he couldn't tell whether it was the slow and steady licks, the continuous sucking or the quick nips and raking of teeth over the same spot that felt better. Just like before, it was over almost as soon as it'd started, and Sasuke sat back, smirking at the result.  
  
"Who knows where that tongue has been." Naruto whispered out, not even sure if the sound had made it past his quivering lips.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know, dobe." Sasuke stood up and set to work on cleaning up the mess they'd both created, almost as though he had no idea the turmoil tossing in his rival's head.  
  
"Jerk." Naruto exclaimed in a stage whisper and stalked off to the young man's bedroom. "Just for that I'm borrowing your clothes, smug bastard." Sasuke laughed and continued to clean up the kitchen as Naruto ran the shower to get cleaned up for his date.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Looking into the mirror, Naruto frowned, patting his head for the thirtieth time. He tried everything he could to make his hair into something that would make Hinata swoon, but everything looked weird on him. From behind him, he heard a snort of laughter.  
  
"Well, aren't you the amused one?" He growled, continuing to play around with his hair.  
  
"You just look so funny, trying to look nice for a girl."  
  
"I bet it was that cookie dough you rubbed in my hair." Naruto muttered to himself, ignoring Sasuke for the moment. He tilted his head forward a bit to make sure the stuff had all been washed out.  
  
"If she wanted you to look any different, she would have asked some other blonde out." Naruto looked up and nodded thoughtfully.  
  
"True, but I don't want to mess this up."  
  
"You won't, dobe. She asked you out... that has to stand for something." He didn't know why he was encouraging his rival, but he continued on, seeing the flicker of hope in his blue eyes beginning to grow. "Just do your hair the way you normally do. She'll love it."  
  
Naruto smiled and ran to the bathroom quickly. When he returned his head was sopping wet and he had a towel on his shoulders to keep Sasuke's black button up shirt from getting too wet. Sasuke gave him a confused look, which he returned with a smirk and a shrug.  
  
"I'd move if I were you." He warned before leaning over and shaking his head wildly, identical to the way a dog dried himself off. Water went spraying everywhere, including onto Sasuke, who hadn't heeded the blonde's warning. Said young man looked up and began snickering. "I told you so." Sasuke shot him a glare, but otherwise ignored the incident.  
  
Naruto returned to the mirror, smiling to himself as his fluffy hair began to dry like normal in the sunlight shining through Sasuke's windows. He decided to leave the top two buttons undone, but his hands stopped when he caught the mark on his neck.  
  
"Asshole!!!" He cried, outraged. "You gave me a hickey!" Sasuke moved in closer, behind him and examined the mark. There was a hint of humour in his eyes.  
  
"Hmm, so I did." He smirked at Naruto's reflection in the mirror. The blonde looked panicked.  
  
"What if Hinata sees it?!"  
  
"Well then, if she really likes you she'll get angry and jealous of whoever you've been seeing." Naruto winced, but there wasn't much else he could do about the mark Sasuke had left behind.  
  
"Fine, fine." He breathed out, giving himself a once over to make sure everything was in place.  
  
"Do I look okay?" He asked.  
  
"Yeah, you look good." Naruto turned around and smiled.  
  
"Honto ne?"  
  
"Yeah, Hinata will love you, but don't you have to go meet her first? What time is it?" He wondered, looking to the little alarm clock next to his bed. Naruto started and looked to the clock as well.  
  
"Shit, I'm going to be late!!" He yelled, tossing the towel aside and dashing down the stairs to the kitchen to pick up the food Sasuke had wrapped for him. His rival followed behind, taking his time and called out to the young man just as he was opening the door to leave.  
  
"Oi, Naruto!" Naruto turned around, pausing in the open doorway. "Good luck with Hinata." Naruto nodded and began to move when Sasuke continued. "And if anything goes wrong, you know you can come back to me."  
  
Neither teen had mentioned the incident in the kitchen aside from the mark that had been left behind, and neither wanted to. When Naruto thought back on it, he was glad they hadn't discussed it, as he wasn't entirely sure he wanted to call it a mistake, which he knew they would agree upon if the subject ever came up. It was to become an unwritten thing between them. Not necessarily a rule, but more of a secret. Naruto stopped and looked serious for a moment. He glanced up to his friend who was standing a few steps up on the staircase and smiled serenely.  
  
"Of course." He grinned cheekily and took off, slamming the door behind himself loudly.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Hinata was waiting patiently for him on top of the rebuilt Hokage Tower. She turned around when she heard him running towards her and waved at him pleasantly. "Konnichiwa, Naruto-kun." She said and motioned him to sit beside her on the blanket she'd brought up. He took a second to catch his breath before plopping down gracelessly beside her.  
  
"I'm sorry for being so late!" He exclaimed. She smiled and shook her head.  
  
"You're not late, I'm a little early. I was relieved from my shift a little while ago. Did you want to start eating?" She asked, motioning to both of their baskets. He smiled eagerly and rubbed his hands together.  
  
"Sure!" He said. "But I think I'd also like us to get to know each other a little better too." He unwrapped the onigiri and placed them in front of her. She nodded her head in appreciation.  
  
"Did you make these yourself?" She wondered. He shook his head honestly.  
  
"I would have, but I'm a really bad cook. I asked Sasuke to help me make them." He laughed. I didn't want to burn my apartment down." He pulled out the small plate of cookies and offered her one. "He helped me make these too. See that one?" He pointed to a messy flat blob of a cookie with two holes in them. "I tried to make it look like you... and I was about to give you chocolate eyes, but I remembered your Byakkugan and made the eyes holes instead." She giggled beside him and picked up the cookie he'd made for her.  
  
"It's perfect!" She exclaimed and nibbled off a piece of it.  
  
"Nyah! Sasuke said it looked stupid, but I knew you'd like it." Hinata opened her little basket to reveal two sealed containers and some tea.  
  
"I made you some ramen, I thought you'd like it." She blushed and handed Naruto one of the containers. He accepted it exuberantly and opened it, taking in the delicious scent of miso ramen.  
  
"I love ramen!" He cheered, not minding when a little dripped down the side onto his shirt. It wasn't his shirt anyways. She smiled softly and nodded.  
  
"I thought so." She said. "But I wasn't sure what kind you liked best." He looked at her and laughed.  
  
"Miso is the best, but ramen is ramen!" He took a small sip and sighed happily.  
  
As the afternoon went on, they talked a lot about their teachers and some of the missions they'd been on recently until, on the subject of their team mates, Naruto found himself complaining about Sasuke's behaviour towards him.  
  
"He never treats me with respect." Hinata nodded. "You do though, and I really like it, but he annoys me with his 'holier-than-thou' attitude." He puffed out his chest and made a face which his date laughed softly at. He could tell that the events from earlier that morning were still bugging him and he was confused at his reaction to Sasuke's soft, but talented lips on his skin. "I swear he does it just to piss me off. He's giving me a complex." He continued to gripe about the annoyances of his team mate until he was interrupted a few minutes later by a yawn.  
  
"Are you tired already?" Hinata asked. Naruto shook his head furiously and held his hand up.  
  
"No, no, it's just I didn't get a good sleep last night and we've been sitting here for a couple of hours." He looked to the empty food containers and got an idea. "My house is nearby, did you want to drop this stuff off and go for a walk with me?" He stood up and held his hand out to his date. She blushed furiously and nodded, taking the offer.  
  
"Sure." She said and helped him pack away their things. Together, they walked back to his apartment, hand in hand, and stayed that way until they parted later on in the evening.  
  
All in all, Naruto had had a great day.  
  
(End Chapter)  
  
To Katsfire: Henge no jutsu is your basic transformation jutsu. It uses chakra to create an illusion. Whether the illusion is another person, or an object. Naruto used Henge no jutsu and Gamabunta's chakra to turn the toad into the Kyuubi during his fight with Gaara.  
  
To Shirl: Thank you so much for pointing out ff.n's mistakes. I hope this fixes the problem.  
  
To Aka: I apologize if my lack of regular posting has caused you to lose the ideas. I'm going to try and update a little more regularly so you don't lose your place again. Oh, and I nearly died when I read your explanation: "naru apologizing for -cough- wanting to be fucked by sasu –cough-" hee hee... I think that one sentence was what influenced me to include that lil SasuNaru scene in here. Originally it was just supposed to be a food fight and nothing more. (Course, I also remembered that there was a lemon coming up in the next... four chapters... holy shyte... that's soon...)  
  
To lightdragon1987: He didn't sleepwalk to Sasuke's house, it was more of the Kyuubi side of his consciousness that did the walking, so when the 'Naruto' side of himself finally recognised where they were going it was like waking up.  
  
To Jade Tatsu: I finally figured out what you were talking about. I swear it wasn't my fault, I had the scene change written in. ff.n just doesn't like me too much. I hope this is better. Oh, and Naruto didn't recover... he just is remarkably adept in stuffing the bad stuff down. Oh, and Akatsuki is definitely around, and they will play a big role in his and Sasuke's final confrontation.  
  
To Kyuubi-chan: What happened to your threats to poke me... cries  
  
To The La/=/er: don't give up so easily. It's also a competition for me... to see if I can write well enough to give you two things to say. I've got a lot more of the story to go. And as for a prize.. well, you two decide what you want from me. I can draw (or so I'm told), and there's always a fic. I agree... I thought I was using too many adjectives... and Naruto wasn't really awake while they were talking. He was sorta floating. I also fixed the teme thing, thank you for that. Oh, and epiphany is the coolest word.  
  
To TheTrueSilver: Yes, Orochimaru did rape Naruto. And that dream sequence was actually the memory of what happened that night when Naruto was fifteen. (Yes, Orochimaru used Naruto's best friend against him)  
  
TO ALL: I hope you al enjoyed the fluffy chapter. The next two are probably going to be similar in feeling, and then I go straight into the good stuff (finally).  
  
I checked my notes, and if all goes according to plans, the ultimate climax between Sasuke and Naruto will be in chapter 50. Wow. Right on the dot. I guess this means I know how fast I better get this stuff out. Read between the lines and you might die of a heart attack. Gomen nasai. I'll try and keep going as fast as I can.  
  
Oh, and no, Hinata didn't notice the hickey. 


	48. Years Gone By

No, the chapter doesn't mean Naruto has spent years with Hinata... it means... well, you'll understand when you get to the part about Sasuke and the picture frame.  
  
Chapter Title: 48. Years Gone By  
  
Naruto and Hinata were cute together. They took walks in the park, sat and watched the sun set, and Naruto even picked her daisies one day. And they talked every chance they got. To Naruto it seemed as though nothing had changed between them except that they were closer friends than before. He really enjoyed having someone else he could talk to about the little things that bugged him daily.  
  
"He's been bugging me for his shirt back for almost a week now." He grumbled, stirring the noodles in his bowl listlessly.  
  
"The shirt was Sasuke's?" Hinata asked quietly, troubled by her date's despondency that night.  
  
"Yeah, I borrowed a shirt from him, but I didn't know it wouldn't like ramen stains as much as I do." He sighed and looked up to the girl beside him. "And now he suspects I did something to it. If he'd told me it was special or something I might not have taken it." Hinata giggled from behind her hand.  
  
"Of course you would've." She replied. "You would have done it just to upset him." Naruto looked at her for a moment, playing the scenario out in his head before smiling and nodding in agreement.  
  
"I suppose." After that, the couple's mood picked up a little bit, but Hinata could tell that her date's mind was still on Sasuke and his shirt problems.  
  
(star)(star)(star)  
  
Later on in the evening found Naruto waiting for any sign of movement out of his partner. He and Sasuke had taken to sparring in the dead of night to make sure they were ready for another violent raid. So far there had only been a few other injuries, no deaths, as the attackers had been met with the more elite shinobi of the village.  
  
"You think that you'll be able to anticipate my attack like that, dobe?" Sasuke's voice echoed through the forest, causing the blonde to growl under his breath. To prove his point, he threw a kunai just left of his rival's head, slicing off a couple of hairs.  
  
"Asshole!" Naruto screeched in shock. "That was close!"  
  
"And you think your enemies are going to miss like I did. Purposely." He smirked to himself, keeping hidden in the canopy of darkened leaves, his Sharingan wheel glowing faintly in the foliage. Naruto looked through the trees, trying to spot Sasuke through the leaves, and continued walking, in the direction of the voice. He didn't seem fazed at all by the jab in Sasuke's words.  
  
Sasuke shook his head, bemusedly and decided to follow his friend deeper into the forest. Within seconds he found himself frowning when he realised he'd lost sight of the blonde momentarily, but a flash of orange, slightly ahead of him, reassured him of his target. Naruto stopped and looked into the trees again, nodding.  
  
"You think you're so smart, jerk." He exclaimed, closing his eyes and raising his arms, palms up. Sasuke was caught off guard by the sight of his rival in such a vulnerable position and decided to teach him to think before he acted. "Just watch this new jutsu!"  
  
He hopped from branch to branch, as silent as the wind, before throwing a handful of shuriken stars at the still blond boy. Naruto's ears twitched at some invisible sound and he looked straight at Sasuke, disappearing in a cloud of smoke seconds before the shuriken would have found their mark.  
  
"You gave away your position." The real Naruto snickered, holding onto Sasuke's shoulders tightly with one arm, a kunai pressed to the young man's throat in his other hand. "I'll bet you thought I was being stupid." He smirked, watching the hairs on the back of Sasuke's neck tense and bristle as his warm breath whispered across the sensitive skin.  
  
"How'd you do it?" Sasuke asked softly, shoving the rest of his weapons into their holsters and conceding defeat. "I was watching you the whole time." Naruto snickered.  
  
"True, but that last throw made you cocky. When I disappeared out of your sight for a couple of seconds, you didn't think anything of it, did you?" He laughed quietly and leaned his chin on Sasuke's shoulder, relaxing his grip on the weapon. "There used to be a time where I would do something stupid in a sparring match with you and end up nearly breaking my neck to avoid my own mistakes. I never thought I would see the day that I would best Sasuke in sparring." He felt Sasuke's back shudder with suppressed chuckles, his chin bouncing with the movements.  
  
"I'd only lose to you, dobe." He whispered back, still well aware of the possibility of watching eyes, however unlikely. "So what are you up to the day after tomorrow? You want to meet me again after our patrol and have some dinner before another match. I will make sure this doesn't happen again." He grinned, even though Naruto was behind him and probably couldn't see it. He didn't bother asking Naruto about tomorrow, knowing the boy already had plans.  
  
"Ah, gomen nasai, Sasuke, I've got a date with Hinata then." The blonde chuckled and let go of Sasuke, putting the kunai in a safe place on his belt. "She told me she wanted to see the old police building. Said something about never seeing the crumbling place before. I was going to take her around that area tomorrow and maybe take her out for some sushi or something the next day." He chuckled softly, not noticing Sasuke's suddenly tense shoulders. "I swear I'm becoming poor like this. Maybe next time I'll just try and make her something for dinner instead of always taking her out." Sasuke nodded and turned around on the branch slowly.  
  
"So you two are serious now?" He asked tentatively. Naruto frowned at the question and shrugged.  
  
"I suppose so." He said. "I enjoy her company so much; she's sweet, kind, attentive; but there's something that I don't feel when I give her hugs. I guess it's not a real relationship, but I've never known any different. She's treating me the way I should think to be treated, and I hate myself for saying it, but I'm not sure it's enough for me to be happy. I just don't want to disappoint her." Sasuke remained silent for a while before he cleared his throat to offer his opinion.  
  
"This is your problem." He said, emotions hidden in the shadows. "Deal with it yourself. Just don't make any brash decisions, dobe." Naruto nodded glumly. "But don't forget that I'll always be here if things fall apart on you. I won't leave you no matter what."  
  
"Really?" Naruto tried squinting in the darkness to see his best friend's face, but the shadows blocked everything except the glow of the still Sharingan wheel and the outline of black on black.  
  
"Of course, dobe." Sasuke replied. "You never left me when I was caught by the darkness, why should I leave you?"  
  
"But I'm not in danger here." Naruto retorted.  
  
"I'm still here." There was a moment of comfortable silence before Naruto cleared his throat.  
  
"Are we done here?" He asked softly. Sasuke nodded and waited until his friend had left before slamming his fist into the tree branch he was sitting on. He hated lying to his best friend, but how was he supposed to tell the brat something he couldn't understand himself. He frowned at the small splinters of bark still clinging to his knuckles.  
  
No, he did understand it; he just didn't want to admit it to himself. And he wouldn't.  
  
(Star)(star)(star)  
  
He returned to his empty house and made his way to his bedroom, just beginning to notice the strain of fatigue pulling on the edge of his mind. He lazily pulled off his shirt and shorts, preferring to sleep in his boxers during the summer months and glanced at the over turned picture frame that was covered in dust. He hadn't really touched anything in his room for years, and that particular picture had been left undisturbed for well over five years.  
  
He walked over and picked up the frame, studying the young forms of Team seven. He smiled to himself, tracing the outline of their faces with his finger, the digit lingering on his own face. Naruto and he wore twin looks of venom, aimed at each other and it was almost enough to make him laugh.  
  
"My, how things change, dobe." He whispered to the small blond boy in the picture, before replacing the frame to the stand, face up.  
  
(Star)(star)(star)  
  
In the morning, Sasuke awoke to the news that Sakura had been put in the hospital from a raid the previous night. The jounin that told him also explained that they were minor injuries and she was being looked after by Lee. He sighed to himself and continued on through the streets to his patrol route. He'd keep an eye out for Naruto on his path and see how he was taking the news. Maybe after their shift they could go to the hospital for a quick visit. It wasn't ten minutes before he bumped into the cheerful prankster.  
  
"Ohayo Naruto." He greeted the young man.  
  
"Hey, Sasuke!"  
  
"Have you heard about Sakura?"  
  
"Yeah, Lee told me on my way home last night." Naruto looked at the ground sadly. "Me and Hinata are going to visit her after my shift, just before our date. I know what she did to me was bad, but I still love her... just not the way I thought." He grinned and looked back to Sasuke who nodded in agreement.  
  
"I love her too."  
  
"You do!" Sasuke frowned for a moment, wondering why the blonde was so excited, before he understood what he said. "Dobe, I love her the way you do."  
  
"Oh." He looked crestfallen. "I just thought with the way you were always going about with your plan to restore the Uchiha clan to its former glory, I thought..." He trailed off, embarrassed. Sasuke was surprised. He'd forgotten about that for a while.  
  
"I'm too busy to look for a girl now." He grunted uncomfortably. "We are in a war you know. When am I supposed to find the time to settle down?" Naruto chuckled and started walking off.  
  
"Fine then, Mr. Celibate. I'll make sure you find the love of your life when we're done with this war... or when I'm Hokage, which ever comes first." He laughed to himself and waved his hand over his head, not bothering to look back.  
  
"I thought you'd forgotten that dream!" Sasuke called out.  
  
"I'm just taking my time!"  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"Sasuke!!" Sakura exclaimed, jumping forward in her bed to grab a hold of the young man in front of her. Sasuke and Naruto smiled at her eagerness, while Lee just shook his head bemusedly.  
  
"They told me she's just got a broken arm and nothing more." He nodded to her cast, which was already lavishly signed by fuzzy-brows himself. Sakura nodded, holding up the hard plastered arm.  
  
"And they forced me to stay over night in here." She explained. "My mom was in a panic when she came in to visit me this morning. Tried blaming doctors and nurses just to get me out of here. And this stupid cast is so... clunky!" She whined.  
  
"Tsunade-baba could probably heal that for you." Naruto pointed out, finally attracting attention to himself and the petite girl on his arm. Sakura nodded thoughtfully.  
  
"Congratulations on you and Hinata dating, you two make a really cute couple." She said and immediately went back to the young man she had her arms around. "You know, we should patrol together! It would be a lot safer for the both of us." Naruto rolled his eyes and Hinata hid her laughter behind her hand.  
  
"You can patrol with me!" Lee interjected enthusiastically. The pink-haired kunoichi frowned on him.  
  
"You're not even a ninja!"  
  
"I can still patrol and do work, even if I'm not officially a ninja any more!" Lee protested. He seemed to have started growing a back bone around the girl. Sakura smiled in admiration of not only his defence, but also because of his determination. He never gave up, no matter what. A soft knock from the door announced the presence of Neji.  
  
"Konbanwa, Sakura-chan." He nodded politely to the girl. She smiled and nodded back, taking his offering of flowers. He watched her make room for the bouquet in her water glass and turned to the other occupants of the room. "Naruto!" He exclaimed, noticing his cousin and her new boyfriend.  
  
"Neji." Naruto said, studying his friend for a moment. "Don't tell me you of all people are going to give me the 'older brother speech'." He moaned. Sakura and Lee chuckled to themselves, but Neji nodded sternly.  
  
"I am her older cousin and it is the branch family's duty to protect the members of the main house."  
  
"You do remember the chuunin exam, don't you?" Naruto asked, a smirk on his face. Neji nodded.  
  
"I remember it well. You kicked my ass into the ground for beating up on Hinata." Sasuke was the only one who looked surprised. Apparently no one had told him of his rival's matches. "And if you recall, it's in the past." He looked up to Sasuke for a moment. "We've all changed from the children we were back then. And that means that no one can break my cousin's heart without going through me." Naruto smiled and nodded, taking hold of Neji's outstretched hand.  
  
"And we all know how many hearts I've broken already. I think you're talking to the wrong orphan; Sasuke's standing right behind you. If anyone is a heartbreaker, it's him." Sakura laughed nervously but Neji ignored the both of them. He smiled serenely at the blonde in front of him.  
  
"I know you're not like that Naruto-kun, I trust you with my life." Naruto's facial expression brightened suddenly at those words and he jumped at the older boy in a tight bear hug.  
  
"I trust you too, Neji-white-eyes!"  
  
"Naruto, we should get going, now." Hinata exclaimed softly, behind the two. "Unless you wanted to skip visiting the police building and go straight to the ramen bar." Naruto was about to open his mouth to reply when they all heard a snort.  
  
"You're taking her out to ramen, dobe?" Naruto bristled and turned to his rival.  
  
"Yeah, so?"  
  
"I thought even you had more class than that."  
  
"I don't see you with any girlfriends to even take out!" He snarled in reply. "So don't even try and make fun of me, Mr. Celibate." He sneered out the nickname they'd joked about the night before. There might have been more said, but Hinata managed to pull Naruto out of the room before they could start anything that would put more of them in the hospital. But not without hearing Sasuke's voice echo out of the room.  
  
(End of Chapter)  
  
THERE IS A REASON (aside from the fact that he likes Naruto) THAT SASUKE IS ACTING SO RUDE TO NARUTO.  
  
One thing I would like to point out is everyone pretty much wants Hinata to end up okay at the end of her relationship with Naruto. I found that rather amusing. Of course, I've had this whole thing planned out for a while, and you'll just have to see how the whole thing ends in the next couple of chapters. Don't worry though, I adore her.  
  
To Ryouseiteki: No, Hinata doesn't notice the hickey at all... she just assumes it's a bruise from before. She's naïve in her own cute way.  
  
To Falcon-Rider: Damnit... have you been reading my notes or something?! Nu... that can't be it... I know! You're reading my mind. Bah, you'll find out in the next two chapters.  
  
To ManicReversed: Thank you very much. I know how hard it is to go through ff.n looking for a fic only to find it was never finished, or it's ended (mostly crappily too) That, and the knowledge of how frustrating it is to wait for updates, is the reason I try so hard to continue. It also helps that I haven't lost interest in Naruto yet. That's usually how I end an obsession. But Kishimoto-sempai keeps me happy, so I can keep writing.  
  
To the La/=/er: Yeah, but I really enjoy it when you two relate so thoroughly to my story. It lets me know exactly what I did right and what I need to work on. Don't worry about the competition. If it comes, then it will. No forcing or anything. Course... I do have a feeling I know when the really big ones will come... but that's not for a little while. I kinda do something really bad to people. Anyways... back to the point. The group of them are actually around 17, with Sasuke turning 18 sometime in the VERY NEAR FUTURE (Which should explain exactly why Sasuke was so upset with Naruto going out with Hinata "the day after tomorrow" which is basically tomorrow now). I'm glad you noticed what I really meant when I said that whole 'opposites attract' thing.  
  
To Aka: He wants to sleep with Sasuke?  
  
To lightdragon1987: My version had Kyuubi wanting to get out, but otherwise putting up with Naruto.  
  
To Kamikakushi: Thank you for the plushies, however I already have a pair. It's what happens when you give Nazo enough money and set her loose on an Anime Convention.  
  
To schokokruemel: I seem to be doing that to a lot of people. I hope your schoolwork wasn't affected too much by me. I don't mind it if English isn't your first language, I was able to understand it very well, so no worries.  
  
TO ALL: I'm glad you guys enjoyed the cookie-dough scene. Not only was it a spur of the moment thing on my part, but I was afraid it was too soon for their relationship. After going over it in my head (a million times) I realise it's the right one, and I need to add a lot more NaruSasu tension in the next chapters in order to prepare you. Heh heh... Hope you enjoyed this chappie. 


	49. Happy Birthday to Me

I see that there are a lot of people who are starting to get mad with me over the last chapter. I apologize. I thought I made myself clear in chapter 47 that this story always has been and always will be a NaruSasu. It may seem like Naruto and Hinata are hitting it off, but did no one pay attention when Naruto was telling Sasuke that he didn't like Hinata the way he thought he should.  
  
I'm one of the most loyal NaruSasuNaru fans, and I'm pretty sure I always will be, so I'm going to level with you guys on Naruto's psyche. Naruto is starting to fall in love with Sasuke, but these things take time, especially when you take into account the fact that Naruto hasn't really had much love to begin with. (Take his relationship with Sakura for example). Right now, he's only with Hinata because she not only feels normal to him, but she shows him constant attention. Sasuke's definitely in love with Naruto... has been for some time now, but he's not going to make a move on his best friend until he knows he won't lose. When Naruto starts screwing Sasuke, cause yeah, that's how it's going to be at first, he's going to take his time realising his feelings.  
  
I'm sorry to those of you who read this story, hoping to see some PWP lemon or something, or just to see Sasuke and Naruto all lovey-dovey with each other, because it will be a long time before that ever happens. Unlike a lot of people out there, I'm doing my best to keep these guys in character, so unless you want a piece of shit, you're going to have to be patient. It's Kishimoto-sempai's fault for making his characters so complex. They take a while to bend to my will.  
  
And thus ends my little rant. To sum up: THIS STORY WILL ALWAYS BE NARUSASU. These things just take a bit of time because I'm trying my hardest to remain true to the series. Thank you and happy reading.  
  
(Please don't yell at me when a story isn't going your way, I'll just ignore you. It's my story... deal with it.)  
  
Chapter Title: 49. Happy Birthday to Me  
  
"Why can't he just leave me alone sometimes?" Naruto huffed, a feeling of déjà vu coming over him as he stirred around the noodles in his ramen bowl.  
  
"I thought you and Sasuke were friends." Hinata said quietly. He shrugged and rolled his eyes.  
  
"We are. It's just so degrading when he insults me like that. I mean, I've gotten used to him calling me 'dobe' all the time, and now it doesn't seem as insulting when he says it, but he acts like everything I do is beneath him." Hinata placed a hand on his shoulder across the table and patted it comfortingly.  
  
"Don't let it bother you too much, Naruto-kun." He looked up at her and smiled.  
  
"But his opinion is so important to me. We're best friends, but he's still an asshole for being rude to me like that."  
  
"Do you think maybe he doesn't know how to show his affection for you?"  
  
"Affection?!" Naruto practically screeched before stopping to think about it. "I guess he just doesn't like to show the world that we're friends. But it can't be the other way. He's straight." Hinata giggled. "Plus, why would he like someone like me?"  
  
"I like you, Naruto-kun." He shrugged.  
  
"I know that, but he's just... elite." She nodded and they went back to their dinner.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
When Sasuke heard the knock at the door, he found the last person he'd expected, waiting.  
  
"Hyuuga." He nodded curtly to the petite girl on his doorstep. She nodded in return and followed him inside. "What can I help you with?" He led her to his small living room and they sat down on one of the couches.  
  
"Is there... ano... is there something... I sh-should know about... your relationship with Naruto?" She stammered. He gave her a surprised expression, showing his confusion in his eyes.  
  
"What do you mean? What brought up this question?" He wondered. She shifted uncomfortably in her chair, staring adamantly at her hands.  
  
"Naruto talks about you all the time."  
  
"We're friends. Rivals."  
  
"It's not just that." She shook her head, refusing to look up into Sasuke's eyes. "Aside from a couple of other instances, you're all he talks about and he doesn't even realise what he's doing." They sat in an uncomfortable silence for a moment as Sasuke let the information sink in.  
  
"We're nothing more than friends." He said, almost forcibly. "Don't worry; I'll talk to him about it." She looked up at him and smiled.  
  
"I don't wish to cause you two any problems, I was just wondering." She studied Sasuke for a moment, until he looked away from her. "You two are the greatest friends, from what I've heard, and I would hate to be the one thing that comes between you two." He nodded and stood up, signalling the end of their little chat.  
  
"I'll talk to him about it." He repeated and showed her out.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
The next afternoon, Sasuke went up to the top of the Hokage tower, only to learn there had been an attempt on the Hokage's life. She was throwing books at the Anbu squad when he arrived.  
  
"I don't want to just sit here and do nothing!!!" She yelled angrily, picking up a solid paperweight from her desk, contemplating its fate. "I want to stop defending and start attacking. We can't defend Konoha forever. We look weak. Protecting the village is doing nothing to stop this war." One of the squad stepped forward cautiously.  
  
"Forgive me for speaking out of turn, but what can we do at the moment?" She looked to Sasuke, in the doorway, and smiled welcomingly.  
  
"We're going to up the training of the lower ranks. Come in, Sasuke." He stepped in and realised that there were more than just Anbu in the room. Jounin, chuunin and genin alike were gathered in her office. "I think I would like for the jounin and Anbu teams to start working with the chuunin and genin to improve their skills. Neji, Shikamaru, Sakura and Shino, please stay back to discuss some strategies with the jounin and Anbu. The rest of you are dismissed. Training will star when we have it organised." She nodded her head dismissively and began talking to the gathered men and women before everyone else had left.  
  
Sasuke managed to grab a hold of Naruto's arm, before he ran off to find Hinata, and drag him off to a corner to talk.  
  
"Hinata came to me last night." He said quietly. Naruto looked surprised for a second.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"She is concerned that you're talking a little too much about me." The blonde scoffed.  
  
"What an ego booster, ne?" He frowned. "I don't talk about you all the time and I'm not obsessed with you."  
  
"Nobody said you were, dobe. Hinata was just concerned about you talking about me so much. Hell, just don't bring me up in your conversations."  
  
"Fine, I'll take your word for it." Naruto sighed. "I didn't know she was having such a problem with it. How come she didn't talk to me about it?" Sasuke shrugged noncommittally.  
  
"Maybe she didn't want you to feel offended or embarrassed. From how much I've heard you talk about me, she probably figured I could tell you without hurting you as much." Naruto chuckled to himself.  
  
"More like, she knew you'd be blunt and to the point." Sasuke nodded and let Naruto go off to his girlfriend who was waiting for him. She shot Sasuke a quick, questioning glance which he returned with a curt nod before taking Naruto's arm and heading off for the rest of the day.  
  
Sasuke was about to walk off to his patrol shift when Sakura caught up with him, apparently finished with her conference with the Hokage. She had Lee following her closely, keeping a watch over her battered arm.  
  
"Where are you going, Sasuke-kun?"  
  
"I have a patrol." He exclaimed glumly. Her expression brightened, and she was joined by Ino and Shikamaru, who looked like he would rather be doing aerobics than following the hyperactive blonde.  
  
"Actually, you don't!" Ino exclaimed happily. "Sakura-chan talked to Tsunade inside and she got the old woman to give you a day off."  
  
"Why would I want a day off?" Ino suddenly looked doubtful and turned her accusing glare to her best friend.  
  
"I thought you said it was today!"  
  
"It is, baka." Sakura retorted, returning the glare. "You're just too busy with Shikamaru to remember!"  
  
"Excuse me, but I'm never busy." Shikamaru interjected, looking slightly offended.  
  
"What the hell are you two talking about?" Sasuke asked, getting annoyed.  
  
"We're taking you out for dinner to celebrate your birthday!" Sasuke groaned softly to himself and allowed the girls to drag him along. "You didn't have plans, did you?" He shook his head.  
  
"I made a bet with someone a while back. The loser had to buy me dinner, but it was so long ago I guess he forgot." Sakura and Ino laughed together.  
  
"Well, we'll take you out!" They continued to pull him along, not hearing Sasuke's muttered reply.  
  
"Yay. Happy Birthday to me."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
They sat down and ordered from the small menu, Hinata doing most of the talking for once. Naruto stayed in silence, trying to find topics to talk to his girlfriend about that didn't involve Sasuke.  
  
"Naruto, daijoubi?" She asked, waving a hand in front of his vacant eyes. He shook his head and gave her a smile.  
  
"Daijoubu." He exclaimed.  
  
"Tell me something about what happened after the fighting broke out during the chuunin exam. I was passed out for most of it."  
  
"Well, I ended up chasing Gaara of the Sand and... he was fighting someone in the forest. When that person ended up out of commission, I had to stand up for my friends. He was starting to transform into the demon that lived inside of him, the Shukaku, and had Sakura-chan pinned to a tree, the sand slowly sucking the life out of her. Well... with that other person unable to fight, I had to do it. He's a lot like myself, you know." She nodded her head to show she was paying attention. "We were matched in strength, and I might have destroyed him if I hadn't been stopped. His siblings took him away."  
  
"I don't see you as someone who would take away a life."  
  
"You must not know me very well then, Hinata-chan." He replied grimly. She nodded slowly before switching the topic from Gaara to Tsunade.  
  
"How did you first meet up with Tsunade-hime? You two always seemed to be so friendly, even when she first showed up as Hokage." Naruto laughed.  
  
"Actually, Ero-sennin was asked to be the Hokage and he refused so we had to go all over the world o find that hag." He laughed sulkily. "I think the only reason I was taken with him is because... this S-class missing nin was after me."  
  
"Really?! Who?"  
  
"Er... Uchiha Itachi."  
  
"Uchiha?" She asked, softly.  
  
"Yeah, but that doesn't matter!" Naruto exclaimed loudly changing the topic. "Tsunade-baba insulted the Hokage position so I had to teach her a lesson. In the end she realised what the position meant to so many people and returned with us. I of course had personal reasons for getting her to return, but in the end everything worked out."  
  
"What were your personal reasons?"  
  
"They're not important anymore!" Naruto said with false cheerfulness, shoving a piece of sushi into his cheek, eyes watering at the whiff of wasabi that hit his nose.  
  
"Was it Sasuke?" She asked, watching for his reaction. He stopped chewing and looked down at his lap guiltily.  
  
"He was really sick." He whispered through his food. Hinata nodded sadly and continued eating, changing the subject once again.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
After dinner, Naruto offered to walk Hinata home, but she declined his kindness, heading in a different direction than that of her family home. He waited until his retreating back disappeared from view before heading out. It pained her to see Naruto looking so... forced that evening. She knew how hard it was to avoid every conversation topic that involved his best friend.  
  
She stopped when she arrived at the door and knocked twice. The door slid open revealing just the man she'd wanted to see.  
  
"Hyuuga, you seem to be making a habit of visiting me. Does your boyfriend know?" She blushed and shook her head.  
  
"Sasuke, may I come in to talk to you about Naruto again?" She asked. He nodded politely and opened the door further for her.  
  
"What's he done this time?" He asked, closing the door behind him.  
  
"He wasn't doing anything wrong, really." She started. "I think he did what you asked him to. He didn't say a word about you without trying really hard not to. He avoided you wherever he could, and..." She trailed off sadly.  
  
"If he did what you wanted, then what is there for us to talk about?"  
  
"He wasn't the Naruto I knew." She exclaimed. "He didn't seem as happy when he was trying to control his topics. He acted weird."  
  
"And what is it you think I can do for you then?" Sasuke asked. She shrugged her shoulders.  
  
"Maybe if you could tell him not to act so uptight around me." She would have said more but Sasuke's frown stopped her.  
  
"I'm not going to keep trying to change him for your sake. If he seemed any different it was because of your request. You can't expect him to just take out a piece of who he is to suit your needs. Either you accept him for who he is or you don't, but please don't ask me to change him. I like him the way he is." Hinata nodded in sudden realisation. "You also need to trust him. Talk to him about these concerns, not me. I don't want to be involved."  
  
"I was being selfish, wasn't I?" She asked rhetorically. He nodded anyways. "I'm sorry to have been such a bother to you, but you're right. I only hope Naruto can forgive me for trying to mould him for myself."  
  
"He has this amazing ability to bounce back from just about everything, no matter how mentally scarring it is."  
  
"It was your birthday today, wasn't it?" Hinata asked. Sasuke nodded. "Omedetou tanjoubi, Sasuke-kun. I hope you got everything you wanted."  
  
"Not even close, but thanks." He muttered sullenly, showing her to the door once more.  
  
(End of Chapter)  
  
I know it's a little bit shorter than previous chapters, but consider that I only finished typing the last chapter this morning.  
  
To Tiinka: I hope that ending helped a little in explaining what was happening between Hinata and Naruto. For sure this is a NaruSasu fic, and I'm sure that the next chapter should prove it without a doubt.  
  
To Ryouseiteki: How's this for a roll?  
  
To RiNuN: This story still has a ways to go before I can bring about the bittersweet ending that is planned, and nothing worth having is ever easy to come by.  
  
To Moon Klutz: Hahaha... but aren't you so happy you read it? Especially now that you know what happens with the whole Sasuke following Orochimaru.  
  
To Psycho Rooster: I apologise if the rant in the beginning seems... angry. I just thought that I'd made it clear before that this was a SasuNaruSasu fic. If you had looked closer at all the SasuNaru interaction, you might have noticed that. I'm glad you reviewed though because it helped me focus my head a little bit more.  
  
To DaisukeDavisMM02: Not yet.  
  
To holycow: I haven't been able to post on aff.n as I think the site is down. I've been trying to get to it for a while, but I suppose they're just doing maintenance or something.  
  
To the La/=/er: I don't mind the pervertedness. I actually like it (pervert author at your service). The thing about his dresser is that not only does he not like revisiting the memories of when he left, he also doesn't stay in his house much. He tended to be around Naruto a lot for a couple of years and only used the room for sleeping and clothes. Naruto's just talking about the fact that Sasuke has every girl and a few guys at his feet and he just shoves em away like they're dirt. . About what Sasuke said at the end... I honestly thought I had wrote it in, but when I checked it wasn't there... and it was one of those spur of the moment things that I can't remember at all... it will come to me eventually... it was something about that last comment and insulting.  
  
To Aka: Now I understand... I never thought of it that way... I always saw it as Orochimaru just punishing Naruto by threatening all of that stuff. As you can see, Sasuke was rude because he's... slightly miffed at being 'stood up' for Hinata. And nobody filled Sasuke in, he was too busy fighting Gaara... and then there was the whole going off to Orochimaru... and then it was just forgotten. Mmm... I love that song!!! (Curses cause it's now stuck in her head). No it's not the police building. Actually... that building was just thrown in after I read chapter 220 of the manga. Sasuke's daddy was a police officer... . No, Naruto's not going to sleep with Sasuke and get caught by Hinata... close, but no. Sasuke kind of does want everything to fall apart, but he doesn't want to force anything. Naruto was happy because it meant Sasuke would be happy... and he's quite adamant about Sasuke being straight. He loves Sasuke (like a brother) and he's happy if Sasuke's happy. Plus... Sasuke hasn't had a girlfriend yet... Naruto thought they were making progress... lol.  
  
.Who's seen chapter 220? Sasuke's daddy was a police officer!!! And I swear on my life Itachi loves his little brother.   
  
LIME!! 


	50. Ventilation

Thank you to Ochiba. I'm taking your advice and not saying another word about the future of this story.  
  
Because of the whole... ff.n hates lemons, I'm not going to post the whole lemon here. What will be here will be cut to fit the R rating I'm giving it. To see the full version, please check out:  
  
http: adultfan .nexcess.ne t/aff/story.php?no=28941  
  
Chapter Title: 50. Ventilation  
  
Hinata didn't get a chance to speak to her blonde boyfriend until after their patrol, around sunset. She came up behind the young man, smiling to herself as he jumped around playfully with his younger cohorts, the Konohamaru Corps. They had grown a lot in the last years, and Naruto was always joking that Konohamaru himself might even be taller than him one day. But then again, Naruto was still shorter than most his age, and Konohamaru never failed to point that out to his hero.  
  
"... you've got to work on your aim, Konohamaru, or else you're always going to get caught!" Naruto was saying to the teen.  
  
"You try aiming a heavy water balloon." The kid retorted back. "It's not like Godaime Hokage's forehead is as big as your ex-girlfriend's is." Naruto winced.  
  
"Don't let Sakura hear you say that or she'll come after us again."  
  
"Anyways, red paint is so much heavier than water; I wanna see you try it next time."  
  
"And get my butt caught like you did? You didn't even hit her!" The younger genin pouted.  
  
"It's hard living up to your image." Naruto laughed and patted the boy's head affectionately.  
  
"I know, but you're making progress. Why not try an alternate version of Oiroke no jutsu on her next time?" He snickered evilly. Konohamaru's eyes lit up and he ran off to prepare, dragging his friends behind him.  
  
"Ja, Naruto-sempai!!!" He called over his shoulder. "Thanks for the great idea!!" Hinata stepped closer, laughing softly.  
  
"Hinata!" Naruto turned around at the sound of her voice.  
  
"It will never work on her, Naruto-kun." She giggled out. "Girls aren't the same as guys. I'm sure that if Tsunade's affected at all, she'll just drool, not pass out from blood loss." Naruto puffed out his chest proudly.  
  
"I have faith in Konohamaru." He exclaimed. "So, would you like to go for a picnic or something?" He asked, running his hands through his hair. "I know it's kind of sudden, and I have nothing prepared, but, you know, if you wanted to." He trailed off, after realising he'd started to babble.  
  
"I'm sorry but I'm going to go out with my team mates for a little dinner." She exclaimed softly.  
  
"Well, that's okay. There's always-"  
  
"No, Naruto. We can't be more than friends. I realised that last night with your help."  
  
"What? What did I do wrong? I did what you asked. I avoided talking about Sasuke all night. I thought you wanted that!"  
  
"I thought so too, but last night you weren't yourself. You weren't the same Naruto I knew. Sasuke's a part of your life that I just can't compete with. It would be really wrong to try and replace him. It wouldn't work between us because it's a part of who you are. I'm sorry for believing that I could change you. You're perfect the way you are." She leaned in and gave him a peck on the cheek, trying to ignore the intense look of hurt that had taken over his face. He stood frozen, watching, as she turned away from him and walked towards the center of the village. The pain was still on his face, but he remained too stunned to move.  
  
Everything came crashing in on him when Hinata finally disappeared from his view, around a corner, and he hit the closest thing he could find. He felt his knuckles collapse against the hard stone, blood seeping through his fingers as an intense stabbing pain shot up his arm, causing him to cry out.  
  
"What the fuck did I do wrong?!" He yelled to anyone who would listen. Unfortunately there was nobody around to hear his shouting. "Oh, yeah. I forgot. I'm now the Kitsune and I have to suffer for my past!!" He screamed at the darkening sky, slamming his healing fist against the rock again. "I'm not good enough for them, am I? So even when I do everything I can, I'm still screwed over!!" He licked at the throbbing hand tenderly, clearing out some of the wound, and realised that both of his break ups had one thing in common.  
  
Sasuke.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
"Naruto, what are you doing here?" Sasuke asked, rolling his eyes at the angry looking blonde. It seemed that everyone wanted to come to him to sort out their problems. He folded his arms across his bare chest expectantly.  
  
"You are nothing but a stupid useless asshole, aren't you?!" Naruto yelled, shoving his way into the other man's house. Sasuke frowned and tensed himself for his friend's verbal lashing.  
  
"I don't know what the hell you're talking about, dobe." Something flared in his bright blue eyes and he curled his lip slightly.  
  
"Hinata broke up with me!" He snarled. "And I only said one fucking word about you all night! She told me that you're a part of me that she just can't compete with. She said it would be wrong to replace you. You just love ruining my life and stealing my dreams, don't you?! And you don't even have a girlfriend yourself." He tackled Sasuke, fists flying in rage. Sasuke managed to avoid a couple of hits, but his furniture betrayed him and he began to trip up, allowing Naruto to pin him to the floor neatly, despite his mood.  
  
"It's your own fault." Sasuke huffed out, not letting his rival see him unconfident. "I didn't do anything to you. You came to me saying you weren't sure about the relationship in the first place. Shouldn't you be happier that you're back to being friends?" Naruto scoffed lightly.  
  
"It wasn't like I had much of a chance to confirm anything. Not only did you steal my only two girlfriends, but my first two kisses, too. All of my dreams of acceptance were shot the moment you stepped into that academy. Everyone hates me and looks up to you. Is there anything of mine you haven't stolen? Why don't we get it over with while we're both here?" Sasuke shifted uncomfortably, but kept a confident air about him.  
  
"I haven't stolen your virginity." He gritted out. Naruto laughed bitterly.  
  
"Of course, you're right!" He sneered down at his pinned team mate. "Sasuke's always right. It doesn't matter that Orochimaru performed the illusion on me... to make me see you fucking me... technically it wasn't you. So once again, I'm wrong." The pinned young man narrowed his eyes.  
  
"You stole my only two kisses."  
  
"Really?" Naruto asked in mock surprise. "And of course that makes all the difference. I've still got you beat a million to one."  
  
"So why don't you try levelling the playing field?" Sasuke asked thoughtfully, lifting his hips up suggestively. Naruto's eyes went wide with the implication of the movement, but Sasuke continued speaking. "I know how you think, what you want. I know that you've never forgotten for one second what Orochimaru did to you. I know that you never really had any feelings for Sakura. And I know that I'm constantly on your mind, whether it's nothing more than our rivalry, or an attraction, or hormones. I know Hinata wasn't enough of a distraction to make you stop thinking about me, and you've admitted to me that Orochimaru's illusion was a guilty pleasure for you. I know you're looking for someone to love you, but you're not going to find it in the places you're looking. This is just an offer of something you've probably been thinking about for a while. Think of it as an alternative. No name calling, no strings, no emotions. Call out whoever's name you want, even mine, and in the morning we're still rivals, best friends. Nothing changes." He took a breath, letting his words sink into Naruto's mind, before adding one last thing.  
  
"Let me be the one you vent on."  
  
It took another second for everything to settle in and for Naruto to understand just what Sasuke was offering him. A way of relieving stress. A way to escape the pressure of his life through pleasure. Sasuke saw the conflict running through his rival's eyes and decided to help a little.  
  
"Maybe number three will help you make up your mind." He whispered and lifted his head up to capture the blonde's lips while he was fighting with himself. He felt the man above him start to relax for a moment before he tensed up again and pressed Sasuke's hands harder into the rug on the floor, breaking the kiss.  
  
"No!" He shook his head. Sasuke was uneasy for a moment. "You're my best friend! I can't do this with you!" He growled out angrily, throwing a well- aimed punch for Sasuke's face. He jumped up from the floor and backed away slowly. Sasuke sat up and nodded solemnly.  
  
"It doesn't have to mean anything, dobe." He said slowly. "This offer is forever. Take your time in making the decision, but always know that I'm here for you. You're right in that we're best friends, and I'll never force you into something you don't want to do. Take a day, a week, take twenty years." Naruto frowned, seriously considering the offer before shaking the thoughts from his head.  
  
"You don't mean this!" He yelled before tackling the young man. "You can't be willing to give up that much for just me." They fought for a moment before the blonde pushed his rival away.  
  
"Go home, Naruto." Sasuke exclaimed. "You need a couple of days to get over your break up with Hinata. Don't worry; I'll be here in the morning." Naruto furrowed his eyebrows, fighting with the confusion in his head before stepping away from the whole scene. He took baby-steps backwards, never breaking eye-contact with Sasuke until his back hit the front door. He moved his hand behind him to grasp the knob before finally looking down at the floor.  
  
"I have to go." He muttered and pulled open the door, running back outside, with the same speed as he'd come in, only with different emotions running through his head. Sasuke wasn't supposed to offer him that. He was supposed to fight with Naruto for a few minutes, give him a black eye and a few bruised ribs, making him wish he'd never gotten angry at the prodigy in the first place and then leave. No one was supposed to be there for him. It wasn't right. He was supposed to be the one no one cared about.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
When Sasuke walked home the next evening from his tiring patrol he was exhausted. He'd encountered a couple of high ranked chuunin from the Sound village, and it took both him and Shikamaru and Shino, both of whom were just walking past, to gain the upper hand and leave the two men running for their lives. He sighed and pulled off his hitai-ate to wipe the sweat from his face and his damp hair from his eyes.  
  
He'd barely gotten the door closed when he began slowly taking off his shoes and shirt until he was left in nothing but his shorts. He might have just collapsed there on the rug if it hadn't been for the clattering he heard coming from his kitchen. On alert before he could take his next breath, Sasuke pulled out a kunai from his weapons holster and slunk down the hall towards the light from the kitchen. His footsteps were lighter without the weight of the sandals.  
  
"Ne, Sasuke! Where do you keep your chopsticks?!" A loud voice echoed from the room, catching Sasuke entirely off guard.  
  
"Naruto?" He asked, halting in the middle of the hallway.  
  
"Yeah!"  
  
"How the hell did you get in?" He asked, taking another step forward.  
  
"I found your spare key!" Came the reply, followed by said spare key being tossed out of the kitchen. "Now tell me where your chopsticks are! My ramen won't stay warm forever." Sasuke looked into the kitchen and saw Naruto dancing all over the room, yelling at his ramen bowl for starting to cool, and turning the place upside down for the utensils.  
  
"They're right here." Sasuke opened a drawer, tossing his friend a pair. "What are you doing here?" He asked, caught off guard by how fast everything seemed to go back to normal with them. Naruto hesitated, the food pausing at his lips before he slurped the noodles down. He turned to Sasuke and shrugged.  
  
"I thought about what you said." Sasuke nodded.  
  
"I understand, everything will go back to normal and it will be as though I had never made the offer." He exclaimed, walking past Naruto and pulling open the fridge door for a drink.  
  
"No, you don't understand." Naruto said, hand shooting out to grab Sasuke's forearm. "I... I want to take you up on the offer."  
  
"You do?" Sasuke turned around suddenly, surprise etched all over his face. Naruto nodded and stepped closer to his rival.  
  
"This is just a stress reliever, ne? Stress, anger, sexual tension? Isn't it odd that we're almost eighteen and the farthest we've gone is those three kisses with each other? This will be like practice for what's to come. It's not like I have any virginity left to lose, ne?" Sasuke flinched at his cold words but nodded. "Are you really willing to let me be the one to steal your virginity?"  
  
"Yes." Sasuke exclaimed, sternly. "What use do I have of it?" He leaned forward to kiss Naruto again, but was stopped by a hand on his chest.  
  
"You... you said no emotions. Kissing is supposed to be romantic. No kissing." The dark-haired man smirked.  
  
"Our first two didn't have any emotion in them." Naruto ignored the comment and latched his lips onto Sasuke's bare collar and the man beneath him was suddenly well aware of his lack of clothing.  
  
"This is for that time we had the cookie dough fight." Naruto murmured into his skin, licking, biting, and sucking as roughly as he could. As soon as he loosened his grip on his rival's wrist, he felt himself pushed backwards and being forced to sit On top of the counter. Sasuke tilted his head back, allowing his partner the chance to continue ravishing his neck.  
  
"I know I must still taste like cookie dough, but we can't do it here." Naruto stopped and looked into Sasuke's eyes, a bit of the demon within him glinting deviously in his eyes.  
  
"Why not?"  
  
"The kitchen is not my idea of a place to lose my virginity." He stated. "My bedroom is right upstairs. First door you come to." When Naruto turned away to head upstairs, Sasuke followed close behind, wrapping his arms around his rival's waist and slowly licking a path from the back of Naruto's ear to as far as he could get with the blonde's jacket in the way.  
  
They moved up the stairs together, until Sasuke became impatient with the jacket and whipped Naruto around, attacking from another angle. He pressed the younger man's body against the stair railing and lifted up the orange jacket to lick tentatively along the waistline of his orange pants.  
  
For a moment, Naruto's mind was clear and he remembered the chuunin vest he still wore for patrol underneath his orange jacket and he panicked, suddenly shoving Sasuke's hands and face away from his navel.  
  
"No, let's not do this." Sasuke stood up, stunned, but caught Naruto's forearm before he could run away.  
  
"Naruto, you came to me." He sighed. "If you don't want to see me... then I'll keep the lights off when we get upstairs. You're not afraid of me, are you?" Naruto shook his head.  
  
"Why the hell would I be afraid of you?" He asked, shoving Sasuke back, occupying the man with his mouth on his bare skin and pulling him up the stairs as quickly as he could.  
  
When they made it up the stairs and into Sasuke's bedroom, Naruto slammed the door shut and peeled his jacket and vest off in the darkness. He tossed them aside, before feeling his way across the nearest wall for the light switch. Sasuke caught on quickly to what he was trying to do and flicked the lever with ease.  
  
"Do you have any..." Naruto trailed off, licking his lips in anticipation.  
  
"Yes, under my pillow." Sasuke nodded to the bed, which seemed to be waiting for them.  
  
"How did you know what I meant?" Naruto wondered aloud, walking slowly to the bed, pulling his fishnet shirt over his head as he went. He sat down on the soft bed and put his hand under the black sheeted pillow, finding exactly what he'd been asking for.  
  
"Do you remember when you were kicked out of your body and you spent weeks tormenting me until I was forced to run to the bathroom?" Naruto looked up at Sasuke, who had followed him to the bed, and nodded. "Well, you know what I ended up doing in the bathroom. You gave me my first erection." He purred, taking the bottle of lubrication from Naruto's hands and putting it on the night stand, licking the tips of the blonde's fingers. "I've been using this ever since." Naruto pulled his hand from his rival's grasp and pulled him up by the shoulders.  
  
"Stop talking." He murmured and pushed him down onto the bed, tracing a line of kisses down Sasuke's jaw and along his pulse, marvelling at the fast-paced beating he felt beneath his lips. It sent shivers down his back, but he continued down to Sasuke's collar bone and lapped at the little space where the bones dipped in. His back was hunched over as he paid the spot an extra little bit of attention, mindlessly grinding his hips slowly into Sasuke's. He was rewarded with a small hiss of pleasure and the rocking was returned with equal passion.  
  
He looked up for a moment, and noticed that Sasuke's eyes were half closed, and glazed over with pleasure. Naruto was secretly glad that the red eyes were partially hidden in the growing darkness. He ignored the thought and returned to trailing lazy kisses down Sasuke's bare chest, flicking his tongue casually over both nipples before continuing lower. He shifted on the bed to drop his head lower, smirking at Sasuke's stifled gasp at the loss of friction to his boxer-clad hips. Somewhere along the way the white shorts had been discarded carelessly.  
  
The blonde tilted his head so he could watch Sasuke's reaction as he licked over the man's muscle-toned stomach from hard training, and took the hem of the unoriginal black cotton boxers in his teeth, tugging them down.  
  
Sasuke shook his head, clearing it of the haze of lust that had fogged up his senses and sat up suddenly. Naruto frowned in confusion, but the lust in his rival's eyes answered every question he had.  
  
"You're going too slow." He growled, rushing at the blonde in a fury of limbs, attacking the other's orange pants, pulling frantically at the buttons. It took him a second to pull them off, before they were tossed carelessly across the room. He hooked his thumbs into the waistband of Naruto's royal blue boxers and pulled them down to his hips. His partner let his body fall backwards onto the black sheets and deftly lifted his waist up to let Sasuke remove the underwear. Sasuke stood up, momentarily to remove his own clothing, but neither spent too much time admiring the nudity of the other, as Naruto got up off the bed, pressing his body flush against Sasuke's. He lifted a hand to caress Sasuke's jaw line slowly, leaning in to whisper in his ear.  
  
"This doesn't mean anything." He exclaimed softly, pressing his lips to his rival's violently, not bothering with tenderness. They fought within the kiss, nipping and licking the other's lips alternately, until Naruto finally brought Sasuke down onto the bed, flipping their positions quickly so he was above the older man. He could feel the body beneath him getting even more aroused, and was surprised to find that instead of the disgust he thought he should have felt, he was aware of his own body's positive reaction to the intimate fighting.  
  
"This'll hurt a lot." Naruto whispered, breaking the kiss for a moment. One hand shot out to feel around for the bottle of lubrication and the other danced its way down Sasuke's torso. Sasuke arched his back, stifling his sharp intake of air and nodded hazily.  
  
"I trust you, Naruto." Naruto looked up from what he was doing to look Sasuke in the eye. Despite the intense glare of the unmoving Sharingan wheel, he saw the commitment there, and it gave him a weird sense of calm to know that Sasuke was freely giving this up to him. "Please don't stop." He heard Sasuke mumble, but it was so quiet and jumbled he wasn't sure if he'd heard it right.  
  
"I still hate you."  
  
"Of course, I wouldn't expect any less."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star) (Where the Lemon was)  
  
Sasuke lazily wrapped his arms around Naruto's shoulders and tried desperately to calm down his racing heartbeat. He opened his eyes to look at the man lying next to him and smiled.  
  
"Oh god." He moaned suddenly, finally being hit with what they had just done. Naruto shifted as though to look up, but couldn't find the energy to make himself move enough to look at Sasuke.  
  
"What?" He asked.  
  
"That was...that was..." He trailed off, not knowing what else to say.  
  
"Good?" Naruto offered tentatively. Sasuke barked out a laugh.  
  
"Good doesn't even begin to describe it. People told me it was good, but you made it indescribable." Naruto laughed quietly.  
  
"Thank you, I guess. It takes a lot out of you, though, doesn't it?" Sasuke nodded, finally noticing that he was aching in places he didn't know he could feel, in a good way. "Can I stay here for the night?"  
  
"Sure." The dark-haired man replied. "But first, can we get cleaned up? I feel sticky." Naruto nodded and rolled onto the bed, allowing Sasuke the chance to get up and walk to his bathroom. He smirked to himself, noticing the slight limp in his rival's step.  
  
He closed his eyes listening to the shower turn on and sighed to himself. He would have started to think about the consequences of what they'd done, but he was too sated to care. He thought about his break up with Hinata and frowned realising that it wasn't as painful once he'd taken a step back from it. It was his own fault, really, for allowing himself to rely so heavily on Sasuke to be in his life, but he found he'd rather have Sasuke than Hinata, and he wasn't about to push away his best friend over some girl.  
  
He was so caught up in his thoughts that he choked back a cry of surprise when a wet hand towel landed roughly on his face. He pulled it off and glared at Sasuke who was standing in the doorway, grinning. His hair was still wet, dripping water onto his shoulders and he had a towel wrapped modestly around his waist.  
  
"Clean yourself up, dobe." He explained, waving a hand dismissively to the wet towel. Naruto blushed and looked down at the mess Sasuke had made on him. He stood up, ignoring his nakedness, and walked proudly past Sasuke into the bathroom with his nose in the air in mock snobbishness. He turned around before he closed the door and blushed bright red again, giving Sasuke another once over.  
  
"You look better with your hair down." He said and shut the door.  
  
When Naruto returned, he found let another thing thrown into his face. This time they were a dry pair of boxers. He shrugged and slipped into them, modesty being a foreign word to him. Sasuke shook his head bemusedly and stood from the bed. Naruto was surprised to see that he's left his hair down.  
  
"Want something to eat?" The older of the two asked. "I figure your ramen downstairs is probably really cold by now. Naruto chuckled to himself.  
  
"Of course, if you're cooking!" He followed Sasuke out of the room and down the stairs to the kitchen where it all started. True enough, the ramen bowl was cold and Naruto emptied the entire thing down the sink. He might have been anguished at the thought of wasted ramen, but Sasuke's offer of more food took his mind off of it.  
  
He sat on the counter and quietly watched Sasuke work. It was a few more minutes before his eyes were drawn back to Sasuke's silky hair.  
  
"It really does look good like that." He whispered to himself.  
  
"I'm glad you like it." Sasuke exclaimed, startling his friend. Naruto didn't even realise he'd voiced his thoughts. He blushed slightly and began drumming his fingers on the counter while he waited for Sasuke to finish. A delicious aroma was beginning to fill the room.  
  
Naruto hopped off the counter and hesitantly hugged Sasuke from behind. The older man jumped slightly, unused to the feeling, but managed not to tense up. The blonde wrapped his arms tightly around Sasuke's chest and rested his cheek on the man's back.  
  
"Thank you." He whispered.  
  
"For what?" Sasuke replied reflexively.  
  
"I know how much it took for you to give up control like that to me. I just wanted to let you know that I appreciate it. It made me feel special. Whoever you chose to help you restore your clan is going to be one lucky girl if she feels even half as good as you make me feel." Sasuke shook his head bemusedly, realising that Naruto had begun to babble. He turned around in the embrace and wrapped his arms around Naruto's shoulders loosely so that the younger man could rest his tear-stained cheek on his shoulder. He frowned, thinking about it again.  
  
"Why are you crying, Naruto?" He whispered softly, tightening his hold on his friend. He lifted his hands to cradle the head of blonde to his shoulder even tightly.  
  
"I am no." Naruto replied defiantly, but a sniffle betrayed him. "Why can't I ever make things work? Why does everyone have to betray me?"  
  
"What do you mean?"  
  
"First it was Mizuki-sensei, then the boy from the forest turned out to be Haku, then Kabuto turns out to be working for Orochimaru, and then you..." He trailed off momentarily. "Why can't anything good happen in my life?"  
  
"Well, I don't know if it's any consolation, but I did come back because of you." Sasuke leaned his head on Naruto's lightly. "One day you'll open your eyes and find your most precious someone lying next to you and know that everything in the world will be okay."  
  
(End of Chapter)  
  
Well, that was the longest chapter I've ever written. With the lemon it comes to just over 5000. Course the lemon is only 800 more words, so. Heh heh. I need food.  
  
Apologies to Kyuubi-chan who won't get to read this chapter until the middle of July. I'm sorry I couldn't get it out in time. I had sooo many problems with it.  
  
I'd like to thank everyone who said to take my time. Of course, this lemon has been planned for a very very very long time now. I was never influenced by anything anyone said about them getting together. I actually had to add the whole Naruto running off because it seemed too fast.  
  
To Yasai-chan: Are you sure you don't have a copy of my notes or something? I would say what I think happened to Sasuke and Itachi, but I don't want to ruin my story line.  
  
To Random Person: I REMEMBER YOU! As soon as I saw the review I was like 'Hey, that name looks so familiar'.  
  
To ochiba: Thank you for reviewing this story. I never planned on rushing their interaction for the sake of any reviewers. Heh heh. I'm taking your advice and not spoiling anything else that will come in future chapters. Thank you so much for the advice.  
  
To lightdragon1987: I tried to keep Hinata in character according to how I thought she would develop over 5 1/2 years, but I guess not too many people saw that. I guess I should have introduced her earlier on to the story so they could get used to her first.  
  
To the La/=/er: About that part (Itachi becoming an Anbu) if you noticed, his father was either a chuunin or a jounin, cause he still had the vest. I assume that he was a ninja who used his training to enforce Konoha law, instead of being ordered on missions. Also, back to the NaruHina thing, he talks like that because that's just who he is. He is blunt and abrasive, not to mention a little dense. Yay for Tsunade! That was written before I was reminded of her short temper in 89. Also, Hinata does see that Naruto likes Sasuke more than a friend, and she knows that there is no way her crush on him would compare to what he feels for Sasuke. So she takes herself out of the picture in hopes that they can figure it all out on their own. She only tried to get Naruto to stop talking about Sasuke because she didn't realise at the time how deep Naruto's feelings went.  
  
To Teki Star: I sincerely doubt that this fic is the most popular one in the Naruto section. I know hundreds that are far superior to my own.  
  
To Iceheart19: It wasn't that Itachi didn't want to be in the Anbu, he just realised that his father had totally forgotten about Sasuke's ceremony. I feel really bad for Sasuke because of how his parents are treating him. It's like he doesn't exist, and if he does, it's only to follow in the shadow of his brother. Itachi sees that too, and you can see him trying to help Sasuke through it without becoming jealous of his father's adoration of his Aniki. It almost makes me wish I'd been the one to murder the bastard.  
  
To cwazy-azn2: The plotlines were actually a collaboration of a bunch of single stories that I decided to put into one. They were mostly little things I wanted to see played out (for example: the 'ghost' Naruto teasing Sasuke like that). And I really don't know how long it will take to finish this story. It all depends on my mood.  
  
To Kreyana: I probably meant the LAST chapter (the ultimate ending so to speak). Ebisu's seal is something I made up because I figured he needed some sort of defence against what Naruto taught Konohamaru.  
  
To Queen of Anime: Thank you for taking the time to read my story. It seems a lot of people are reading the whole thing in one go. Until I saw your application to my group, I didn't even know that this story had been mentioned in anyone else's author notes. And, of course I care that you liked the story. It lets me know that I've done something right at least. Thank you for reviewing.  
  
BIG THANK YOU TO AKANOSHIKA who told people to read this story. Thanks!!  
  
Edit: Because of what Pale Rider said, and the fact that I agree with what they said, the last tiny scene was cut. It simply did not fit in with the tone of the rest of the chapter. Thank you (See, reviews really do matter). 


	51. It's Been A Long Day

Yes, this has some... questionable content, so if you wanted to read it full out, go to aff.n and read it there.

http: adultfan. nexcess. net / aff/story .php?no=28941  
  
Chapter Title: 51. It's Been A Long Day  
  
Naruto awoke in the morning, stifling a yawn. He hadn't even tried cracking his eyes open when he felt the weight above him shift slightly. His ears twitched slightly as years of training told him what it was above him that he couldn't yet see. The mattress was sunk in on both sides of his head and on either side of his waist, nothing was touching him directly. Someone was hovering over him, on their hands and knees. He cracked one eye open and found Sasuke's smirking face leering down at him, inches from his own, a curtain of dark mussed hair blocking the outside world. Several stages of panic set in at the sight and, with a burst of chakra, Sasuke was flung to the floor.  
  
Naruto shook his head and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, wincing at the dazed look his friend was now wearing.  
  
"I-I... I'm so sorry, Sasuke!" He exclaimed, crawling over to the edge of the bed. His rival rubbed the back of his now sore head and chuckled nervously. "I really didn't mean to-" Sasuke held up a hand to interrupt.  
  
"Yeah, you did. You thought I was Orochimaru." He offered an apologetic half smile. "I shouldn't have thought that your fears would have left you so quickly. These things scar for a long time." Naruto puffed up and crossed his arms over his bare chest.  
  
"I'm not afraid of anything, Uchiha!" He stated. "It's been two years; I'm long over that part of my past." He huffed out a breath, trying to look intimidating, but only succeeded in looking childish. Sasuke shook his head bemusedly.  
  
"Whatever you say, dobe. No one's making you confess or anything." Naruto shrugged to himself, figuring it was useless trying to argue a moot point. "Plus by the time I finally whip your ass, you'll be long over your fear of that man for me to be able to use it against you." Naruto grinned.  
  
"So you admit it will be a LONG time before you ever come near defeating the Great Naruto!" Sasuke snorted in response.  
  
"No, I'm saying that in return for helping me become stronger, I'll help you over come your fears. Deal?" Sasuke stood up and held out his hand. Naruto eyed it suspiciously.  
  
"Isn't that kind of impersonal, compared with what we did last night?" He asked, offhandedly.  
  
"You want to seal it with a kiss?" Naruto laughed.  
  
"Wow, what a cliché."  
  
"Make up your mind, asshole!" Sasuke punched the blonde in the shoulder to show his frustration. "Or do you want to pound me into the mattress again to seal the deal?" They both looked at each other for a moment before Naruto burst out laughing, holding his sides. Sasuke chuckled quietly to himself.  
  
"A kiss it is, then." Naruto exclaimed when he'd finally stopped laughing. He got off the bed and stood eye to eye with his friend. They stood in silence for a few seconds before Naruto decided to be the one to make the move. He leaned forward, lifting a hand to bring Sasuke's head closer and brushed his lips across the older boy. They stayed still, lips pressed together, neither one wanting to move, until Sasuke finally took a step forward. After a few minutes, which seemed like hours, Naruto took a step backwards, breaking the kiss with the excuse of needing air.  
  
"You're lying." Sasuke muttered, looking down at his bare feet.  
  
"How would you know?" Naruto asked softly. Sasuke looked up and smirked.  
  
"We were both breathing through our noses." Naruto frowned, but neither felt any need to push the subject further. Sasuke went around the room and began picking up clothing that had been ignored the night before. He bent down to pick up Naruto's orange jacket and found the chuunin vest hidden beneath it. He held it up and coughed, attracting Naruto's attention.  
  
"What's this from?" He asked, narrowing his eyes at the boy who had just gone a whole lot paler.  
  
"It's a chuunin vest." He replied, voice cracking and higher pitched than normal.  
  
"I know that. What are you doing with it?" Naruto was scrambling for an answer. His breathing became shallow and the palms of his hands were slick with sweat. He coughed and wiped them on his boxers, lowering his eyes to the ground.  
  
"Ano... I borrowed it from Iruka-sensei." He muttered. "He said it would keep me safe on patrols." Sasuke sighed and threw the vest across the bed to the man. He knew Naruto was lying, but that morning didn't seem like the right morning to be pursuing things.  
  
"If you don't hurry you'll miss breakfast and we'll be late for our patrol." He tossed over the rest of his clothes and began putting on his own shorts.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
As they rushed out the door, it took Naruto a second to realise that Sasuke wasn't beside him. He stopped and turned around to see him heading off in a different direction.  
  
"Oi, Sasuke!" The other man paused and looked back. "Where are you going?!"  
  
"I'm doing some concentrated training with Kakashi. I got the day off." He replied. Naruto frowned, but nodded and continued walking to the patrolling station to sign in. His thoughts were preoccupied with relief that Sasuke hadn't bothered him on the subject of his vest. He didn't know what he would have done if he'd been pressured into a truthful answer, but he knew that Sasuke was suspicious of his little lie, if not completely sure he'd lied to him. He shook the thoughts from his head and continued on.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Sasuke met up with Kakashi on the usual bridge and was surprised to find the jounin on time. In fact, it was the third time in a row he'd been on time for a meeting with Sasuke. While it wasn't unusual for the man to be on time, it was if he was on time more than one day at a time.  
  
"Where would you like to train?" He asked nonchalantly. Sasuke shrugged.  
  
"A roof top?" He offered. Kakashi nodded curtly and they took off to the nearest flat roof.  
  
At first they started with the usual hand-to-hand tactics, Taijutsu, minor martial arts and the like to get them both warmed up. When Kakashi felt they were ready, he pulled out a kunai and lunged at the younger man, who'd pulled out a kusarigama. Kakashi paused in his attack, smirking at the new weapon. The sickle swayed back in forth as Sasuke tested the weight of the thick chain attached to it.  
  
"A change of pace?" He asked. Sasuke shrugged, not intimidated by his teacher in the least.  
  
"I figured that if I was supposed to get anywhere in this world I can't just stick to kunais and shuriken stars." He flicked his wrist, sending the blade at the end of the chain spinning. He nodded to himself, pleased with the weight of the weapon in his hand. It would be deadly in the hands of the right person and Sasuke had been training with it for the past week on the trees outside his home. He had learned a few new tricks and if he was desperate he had a switch blade concealed in the handle.  
  
Kakashi continued his attack, making sure to keep conscious of the swinging blade. He ducked in close to avoid the moving kusarigama but was surprised when a flick of the wrist brought the deadly sharp blade in, making close combat very dangerous. He jumped back and attacked from another angle, not giving Sasuke time to attack while Kakashi was regrouping.  
  
He knew that Sasuke's weak point with the chained blade would be himself as he had to avoid the weapon backfiring on him, so he went for Sasuke's back, where Sasuke couldn't defend properly. He was met with Sharingan eyes that flared to life. Sasuke seemed to have improved on his Taijutsu as well, and his agility was a lot faster than Kakashi would have expected. It almost made him wonder why Sasuke hadn't been promoted like all the others had, but he had to be focused on the spar. With a flick of his hand, his hitai- ate was removed, allowing his own Sharingan vision. Quickly, he bit down on his kunai, twitching his neck just in time to catch the blade as it sliced its way towards his throat, and while the weapon was being regrouped, he used an exploding scroll to divert Sasuke's attention from him. It only worked for a second, but that's all the jounin needed to set his traps in place.  
  
Sasuke whipped his head around and was met with three identical Kakashi clones. He narrowed his eyes and took it as the signal to begin using jutsus. He let loose his Sharingan eye and sucked in a deep breath, dropping the chained weapon to the ground, when something caught his Sharingan. They were all clones. He cursed inwardly and let out the breath he'd been holding in preparation for his Katon Housenka no jutsu. A small fireball left his lips, disappearing like hot breath on a cold day. One of the clones had pulled out a random Jiraiya novel and had started reading it, ignoring the prodigy, while another merely turned his back on Sasuke and walked to the edge, disappearing in a puff of smoke.  
  
"Are you trying to tell me something, Kakashi-sensei?" He asked, annoyed. The clone with his nose buried in the book lifted a hand dismissively.  
  
"You're boring me, Sasuke-kun." He muttered and continued reading. Controlling his anger, Sasuke grabbed his arm and concentrated his chakra to the palm of his hand as Chidori. When he was deafened by the chirping he took off towards the clones and took them out. Just as he hit the reading clone, another wave of clones jumped on him, only to be taken down when Chidori came swinging right around.  
  
"Am I still boring you, sensei?" He spat the word mockingly. When the dust settled he found his teacher sitting on the ledge reading. The silver- haired man looked up and shrugged.  
  
"Even without looking, I know your movements have become too predictable." Sasuke ground his teeth together and powered up his hand for another release of Raikiri. This time when he charged his teacher, the blast missed and hit the wall of the roof instead, shaking the building down to its foundation. He cursed and looked at his feet, which were entangled with the kusarigama chain that he'd forgotten about. Kakashi, apparently, had not forgotten and picked it up when he wasn't paying attention. Sasuke growled realising his teacher was more skilled than he was at using the weapon, as he hadn't even seen the metal until he was already on the floor. He looked up to his teacher, to find he hadn't even moved from his spot on the wall, and merely turned the page, ignoring Sasuke completely. "I told you so."  
  
Pushing himself to his feet, Sasuke kicked away the chain furiously and lunged at his teacher again, performing hand seals faster than even his eyes could keep up with. The flame of Katon Ryuuka no jutsu exploded from his mouth, appearing to hit the teacher in what would have been mortal accuracy, but Kakashi's speed was a force to be reckoned with and the jounin escaped without any visible signs of injury.  
  
Not to be out done, Sasuke whipped around, keeping his speed and threw his fist at the teacher, blue lightning crackling all around the soft pink flesh. The older of the two didn't show any signs of surprise and only sidestepped the attack, bringing his elbow down painfully on Sasuke's back as he flew past. The genin stumbled and the lightning was sent into the ground, the building rumbling once more with the sound of thunder.  
  
"If this is all you have to show, then Konoha has failed in your teachings." Kakashi exclaimed, bitterly. "And you were wondering why you haven't made it to the chuunin level like the rest of your age group." He let out a sharp laugh and continued reading his book. Sasuke frowned, wondering why his mentor was acting so strange, but he couldn't help but let his mind wander back to what Kakashi had been saying. It was all true. Whether or not Kakashi had been saying those hurtful words out of spite or annoyance, they hit their mark, because it was pretty much all Sasuke had to show from eighteen years living in Konohagakure.  
  
He wasn't sure whether he wanted to show Kakashi up, or attack him for saying those things, but Sasuke continued to lunge at his old teacher, using any and all attacks and weapons he could. Kakashi narrowed his eye and shook his head. Sasuke was so caught up in his anger that his movements had become frantic.  
  
"Keep your anger in check, Sasuke-kun." Kakashi snapped and took a step back, not bothering to retaliate. "If you don't you make mistakes." Both had realised that the silver-haired jounin's words were sharp and filled with bitterness, his presence not actually helping Sasuke improve in any way and as his anger rose, his punches became sloppier, and he left too many openings, until finally Kakashi couldn't take it. In a flash he was behind his former student, a sharp kunai pressed to the young man's throat. It cut the flesh slightly, and the blood trailed slowly down his neck and over Kakashi's hand. Neither noticed it as the tension in the air thickened.  
  
"Try Raikiri." Kakashi ordered. Ignoring the blade being pressed into his throat, he tried to concentrate the chakra into his palm, but was only rewarded with a faint shower of static. "Like I thought." Kakashi continued. "You've known this attack for almost six years and you've only managed to get it up to three in one day. You're pathetic. How do you expect to be able to defeat Itachi if you're not even on par with me? It would be more worth my time to teach walls to talk than to train with you." Before Sasuke had the chance to bite back, the kunai disappeared along with Kakashi, leaving the dark-haired genin alone on the partly destroyed rooftop, the jounin's hollow laughter echoing through his head.  
  
He let out an enraged cry and slammed his crackling fist into the nearest wall. The Raikiri exploded on impact, sending bits of concrete flying all around him. Just because he needed a little bit of time in between uses, didn't mean he couldn't use it more than three times. He'd already increased his maximum to five a day. Not that Kakashi had stayed to find out.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
He hadn't slept in three days. Well, actually it was two days, twenty-one hours and thirty-four minutes, but Kakashi figured three days sounded a bit better. He opened his apartment door and nearly collapsed from relief onto his fluffy puke green carpet. He had every intention of sleeping until the next morning, without interruptions. Even food could wait a day.  
  
He walked groggily over to the couch and nearly collapsed into the plush comfort of the cushions when a messenger bird chirped at him from the window. He looked at it confusedly before he recognised it as the Hokage's. He glared at the poor sparrow before sighing in defeat. If the Hokage wanted him, there was really nothing he could do to refuse, no matter how much his aching muscles protested.  
  
Pulling himself reluctantly from the couch, he followed the bird back to the Hokage offices, making a mental note to apologize to Sasuke when he had gotten his sleep. He knew he'd gone too far, but with all the stress the Leaf leader had shoved onto the Anbu and jounin elite, his own personal problems with Iruka, and his lack of sleep, his tolerance for screw ups was below zero.  
  
He hopped onto the window sill and narrowed his eyes at the woman who was practically buried under mountains of files and request forms. He cleared his throat purposefully.  
  
"I'm honoured you have a job for me, Tsunade-hime, and your obsession with me is flattering, but my day ended after my training session with Uchiha Sasuke. I haven't seen my home in a week, and it's been three days since I've seen the backs of my eyelids. I cannot possibly do what ever it is you want me to do going on seventy-two hours without sleep." She looked up at him and for a moment he regretted his words. If he had been bad, Tsunade was admittedly worse. She was developing eyes that looked like Gaara of the Sand, she was so tired looking. Her hair was sticking out at odd angles and for the first time since she'd returned to the Hidden Leaf, she looked her age.  
  
"Hatake-san." She muttered, and motioned to a seat covered in paper, offering him a seat. He declined and stayed on the sill. "I've got milk at home in the fridge that was fresh when I bought it about a month ago." She groaned, looking at her calendar to confirm. "This is why I hate wars. No time to hit the casinos."  
  
"What do you want? Aren't there other jounins who can do it for you?" She shook her head sadly.  
  
"Most of them are away or have it worse than you."  
  
"Well, what about the chuunin? Surely Shikamaru could just as good a job as I could." He offered again, but was shot down with the same shake of her blonde head.  
  
"Nara-san has taken over some of the teaching at the academy so that Iruka could take some of the higher ranked missions." Kakashi stayed silent, letting himself calm down before he let his anger get the best of him. "It's not a big job, but I need someone to make regular checks on the guards defending the walls around the village for a week. After that, you can take a whole year off if you want to." He sighed but inclined his head to accept the offer.  
  
"Hai, Tsunade-hime."  
  
"I'm sorry Kakashi-san. I really am."  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
Sasuke walked down the street, purposely kicking every stray rock and pebble he came across, trying to vent his anger productively. It wasn't working too well. All he wanted to really do was waste that last Chidori on the nearest wall, but he figured someone would ask if he was okay if he vented that openly. He was about to kick the next stone when, instead of something rough and hard, he connected with something soft and fleshy.  
  
"ITAI, stupid bastard." He looked up to find Naruto bent over, clutching his shin painfully. The blonde looked up at Sasuke and let loose another stream of colourful curses as he checked his leg for any injuries. It wasn't going to be anything worse than a bruise, but Naruto had always been known for his theatrics. "You could have broken my leg, jerk!" He yelled.  
  
"So you're admitting that I'm strong enough to do that to you without even trying?" Sasuke smirked. At least he'd figured out that his rival's presence was calming, if not distracting.  
  
"Of course not!" Naruto retorted, jumping up and shoving his face into Sasuke's. "It just hurt, is all."  
  
"Sure." Sasuke shrugged, remembering his earlier anger and continued walking, brushing past his friend roughly.  
  
"Hey! What's you're problem?!" Naruto asked, turning around and following Sasuke. "You know, you can always talk to me, right? Or you can just vent on me if you don't want to talk." Sasuke paused at the word 'vent', allowing Naruto the chance to catch up. He knew Naruto didn't mean it the way he was thinking, but he did need something to keep his mind occupied, and it was the only thing that appealed to him at the moment. He looked around the street and found that the back of the ramen shop Naruto frequented was just dark enough. Making sure no one noticed them; he pulled Naruto into the darkness and shoved his shoulders against the brick wall. His fingers moved quickly, unbuttoning the orange pants, but he was shoved back by a panicked Naruto.  
  
"Yamero!" Naruto hissed, keeping his hands out to protect himself in the darkness. "Don't do this to me." Sasuke moved closer, slowly, and entwined his fingers with Naruto's. When Naruto stopped resisting, he stepped even closer and rested his forehead on his friend's shoulder.  
  
"I'm not going to do that to you." He whispered softly. "I'm going to do something for you that 'he' never would have done." He lowered himself to his knees and gently continued what he had been doing before Naruto stopped him. He smirked to himself feeling the blue eyes following any of his movements they could pick up on in the darkness. When he'd finally pulled down the jeans and boxers, he closed his eyes and pushed out the rest of the world. Nothing mattered except that he make Naruto cry out his name in ecstasy. It was a challenge, and he never backed down from a challenge. Plus, it was a good way to vent.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star) (Also known as the 'I'm not sure this is suitable for ff.n' part)  
  
"Sasuke..." He hissed, louder than before, feeling his rival do what ever it took to bring him over the edge. "Oh, Sasuke... please..." He begged, not really knowing what he wanted so badly.  
  
Sasuke was getting shivers, hearing his name said in such passion, and nearly came himself when he felt Naruto stiffen in front of him and fill his mouth as waves of ecstasy washed over him. He stumbled backwards and spat the salty liquid on the ground, not particularly caring for the taste.  
  
He stood up and waited for Naruto to finally catch his breath and stand up straight as well, noticing that neither of them had let go of the other's hand. When the blonde opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was the creamy liquid on the ground. He shot Sasuke an offended glare. Sasuke barked out a laugh.  
  
"If I thought we were going to be doing this forever, I suppose I could get used to the taste." He whispered huskily, pressing his lips to his friend's and sharing the taste on his tongue. They kissed for a second before Naruto cringed and pushed Sasuke away from him. He wiped his mouth and stuck out his tongue, dropping his rival's hand.  
  
"I see what you mean." He laughed, pulling up his boxers and pants, fumbling slightly with the zipper. "You're really on a roll, stealing all of my firsts. My first kiss with tongue, my first blow job." He looked up at Sasuke and grinned. "We should keep a record and see who loses the most firsts to the other." Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes at Naruto's immaturity.  
  
"Only you would make that a challenge." He said. "I'm sorry for pulling you into here and doing that... I was just pissed off at-" Naruto held up a hand.  
  
"Are you upset anymore?" He asked, not apologizing for the interruption. Sasuke thought about it for a moment before shaking his head. "Then why would you want to bring it up? It will probably only make you angry again, right?" The older teen smiled softly.  
  
"You're smarter than you look."  
  
"Hey!" Naruto exclaimed, looking thoroughly offended.  
  
"I'm off for the rest of the day, want some company on the rest of your patrol?" Sasuke offered. Naruto flushed, having forgotten about his patrol.  
  
"I was on my lunch break!"  
  
"I know, I've had this shift before too." Naruto grabbed Sasuke's hand and grinned.  
  
"Sure you can tag along, so long as you pay for a quick ramen, since we're here, and we need to find someone who has mouthwash." He stuck out his tongue again, laughter bubbling over, as he dragged his rival into the ramen bar.  
  
(Star)(Star)(Star)  
  
When Naruto's shift ended and they had parted ways, Sasuke found himself on an unfamiliar doorstep. He knew it was the right house, but he'd never actually been to Iruka's house before. He knocked twice and waited for an answer. He could hear someone inside rushing around trying to clean up.  
  
"Look, Kakashi, I'm not in the mood to fight it out with you, I've had a really long day." He heard from the door before the latch was unhooked and the door was pulled open by his former sensei.  
  
"Sorry, I'm not Kakashi." He nodded slightly.  
  
"Ah, gomen, gomen." Iruka apologised quickly and let the younger man in. "What is it I can help my former student with?" He asked, the weariness disappearing from his face.  
  
"I'll be quick. Did you lend Naruto a chuunin vest?" Sasuke asked, bluntly.  
  
"No, why?" Iruka looked at him confusedly. The genin smiled briefly to let the older man know there wasn't a problem.  
  
"Oh, it's nothing. He was staying over at my house one night and I found it. I thought Naruto might have gotten it from you, but I suppose it was just one of my old relatives' that he dug up." He didn't want Iruka to worry too much about the blonde and he felt sure that Naruto would be even angrier if he learned other people knew than if only Sasuke figured the mystery out and kept it to himself. He bowed politely to the chuunin and left, not offering anything more.  
  
Only one question burned through his mind, why was Naruto lying about the vest?  
  
(End of Chapter)  
  
Yay! I finally finished this chapter. I'm really sorry it took so long to get around to. I procrastinated too much in starting it. Anyways, lemme see what to say:  
  
To sandriz: um... sorry but I'm not giving out my photo... heh heh. But thanks for the high praise. Oh, and Sasuke was actually the one to suggest not bringing emotions into the bedroom (or wherever they do it) so it's not cold, it's just normal Sasuke.  
  
To Sanura-sama: wow... that's three people who've pretty much read all 50 chappies in one go... I'm honoured!  
  
To Yasai-chan: You have no idea how many times I have wished that I was a guy just cause I wanted to be in one of their shoes... course with me I'd probably get stuck with screwing Sasuke cause I'm too much like Naruto.  
  
To Random Person: You're quite observant, a lot has gone unsaid between these two, but you'll just have to keep reading in order to figure out exactly what.  
  
To Kamikakushi: I think I actually got the 'no kissing' idea from Pretty Women.  
  
To Heero2001: About Sasuke's birthday, I had a scene in there about that but it didn't fit, so it was cut. The birthday will come up a bit later. For the moment they're a little too busy to worry about it. Plus, I think Sasuke got a fine birthday present...hee hee.  
  
To Aka: Yeah... scary how things work out that way. I figured those rules would be the perfect way to give them all that action without it seeming too sudden. I was going to write a chapter solely from Sasuke's point of view about what happened, but I couldn't get it to work so I stuck to the original notes... but don't worry... there will be something about it. And if you wanted to try writing a longer review, just CtrlC it... and if it doesn't work on ff.n send it to my e-mail. The review count really doesn't matter to me anymore (I think it's broken, on the site is says I have a certain number but in my stats the number is 9 less... so I figure what the heck).  
  
To Iceheart19: I've read the whole manga... I get it when it comes out on Friday. I feel kind of bad about being so harsh on Sasuke's father. He just suffered through something I like to call Uchiha syndrome. It's an inability to show ones emotions to those that really count. Either way: Like father, like son. I still have hopes for Itachi though.  
  
To RiNuN: I'm sorry if this sounds rude, but under no circumstances will this be MPREG. It is not possible in the real world, so it won't be possible for them either. Meaning Sasuke will have to go elsewhere to restart his clan.  
  
To Moon Klutz: Unfortunately, I wasn't able to find the original lemon, so I had to retype the entire lemon. (cries) But it worked out okay.  
  
To Queen of Anime: This is definitely not the last chapter.  
  
To Pale Rider: I took your advice and chopped that last scene. Hopefully it looks a bit better.  
  
To EVERYONE!!!: There's a couple of things I want to say to everyone. First, is I'm a fan of NaruSasu because it seems like more of a deeper connection between the two than SasuNaru. For one, because of his past, Sasuke is a control-freak. Could you imagine how much it would take for him to FREELY give up that control to someone else? Especially after how he was betrayed by the closest people to him? And Naruto has been shoved out of Konohagakure society. Think about it from his eyes. Someone loves him, trusts him, cares for him enough to give themselves to him. Naruto's life has been full of chaos. He's never really been in control of anything, and because he's so close to Sasuke, he would know what it was Sasuke gave up to him.  
  
Whereas if it were SasuNaru, Sasuke would ignore everything and only focus on his release, and Naruto would just be used in yet another way by the village. Hee hee... I'm guessing everyone's skipped this part cause even I know I'm babbling.  
  
Course I like SasuNaru as much as NaruSasu, so in this fic, it really doesn't matter.  
  
Oh yeah... the second thing. I read the manga, so you don't need to ask if I've read the latest one. 9.35 times out of 10 I have, and I even read the little notes at the bottom, like the one from the Friday that just past that said Kishimoto-sempai was taking a week off for 'data collecting'.  
  
See Ya!!!


	52. Sasuke'sexual

I'm sorry for the long wait (yes, I know it's been over a month), but I have a few good excuses (One of them being a trip for a week... and then I couldn't get myself to finish the chapter) You all have my wonderful Fruits Basket-esque Mi-chan (aka Kyu) who kept bugging me to finish, just like I asked her to. It's really the only way I'll get something done if I get stuck on something.

I hope this chapter will make up for some things. It's a plot booster and it's got some good yumminess. No lemon this time though.

Chapter Title: 52. Sasuke-sexual

Kakashi closed his eyes, feeling his face tense up in a cringe no one could really see. When he'd heard about the rumour, he didn't believe a word of it, but after having a talk with the chuunin who had heard it all, he had his doubts. So, he did what most people should have done before starting to talk, he went straight to the source and asked the boy himself.

"So is it true?" He sighed, looking up at Sasuke. The younger man was blushing furiously, but the jounin wasn't sure if it was out of guilt or out of embarrassment of having his fellow team mates there to hear Kakashi ask the question. There was silence among the four as they waited for Sasuke to reply when Naruto found he couldn't hold his tongue any more and burst out laughing. Kakashi frowned, but was slightly amused at the reaction he had gotten from the genin. Sakura's eyes had nearly popped out of their sockets, and Sasuke was flaming red, glaring at Naruto in a way that should have been able to turn a whole village to stone.

"Sasuke?!" Naruto exclaimed when he found the breath to speak. He was still holding his gut and wheezing between chuckles. "Him, fucking some girl in a back alley? I couldn't imagine him being so crude." He shook his head.

"The person who heard the girl moaning his name, said it was behind Ichiraku." Kakashi explained. Naruto's mouth snapped shut so fast he bit his tongue, and after a moment remembered how he was 'supposed' to react.

"Y-you soiled I-Ichiraku by screwing some common girl behind it?" He yelled, pointing a finger at his rival, but everyone knew he was faking it. The only thoughts going through his mind were ones of how badly Sasuke was going to murder him afterwards for being so loud the previous afternoon. He shut up after receiving Sasuke's expected glare and turned to Kakashi once more.

"Today, I'll just be training Naruto." He explained. "You two can go on to your patrols. Sakura, I'll get to your training tomorrow." He nodded to Sakura and Sasuke, who took it as their cue to leave.

"Hey! Don't leave me with this pervert!" Naruto screeched at their retreating backs. Sakura turned back and smiled broadly.

"Don't worry, Naruto-kun. If Sasuke made it out of Kakashi's training without being raped, I'm sure you will too." She laughed and disappeared into town, not realising the impact of her words. Sasuke, who had stopped as well, looked at the blonde's frozen expression and offered a smirk.

"Don't worry so much, dobe." He nodded reassuringly, knowing there wasn't much he could do for his friend without compromising the secret he was keeping for the man. Naruto shook his head, as though dispelling the horrid thoughts, and grinned easily, almost to the point of being overly fake. Sasuke turned and disappeared after Sakura into the heart of the village.

"I don't really want to train with you, Kakashi-sensei." Naruto exclaimed, turning to the jounin. "Couldn't I train with Ero-sennin and you can go take a day off or something?"

"I wish, but Jiraiya isn't in the village at the moment, he's doing a handful of middle-class missions for the next week." The blonde pouted, but continued trying to barter his way out of training.

"Even though I can only see one of your eyes, you look like the walking dead." Naruto complained. "Gaara's probably had more sleep than you, and from listening to Sasuke, you're a real bitch when you haven't had your sleep. When was the last time you saw a pillow? Have you ever heard of sleeping pills? You know, you should stand up to Tsunade-baba. She's not half as strong as you people make her out to be!" He continued chattering as Kakashi grabbed him by the collar and led him out to the training grounds near the forest, not even noticing, now, that the younger man was even talking. After a few years the rest of Cell Seven had learned to tune Naruto out completely.

For a while, they fought, neither one saying a word to the other. At first, Naruto was itching to say something to ease away a little of the tension his teacher was oozing, but he decided not to incur the wrath of the tired jounin and kept quiet. Eventually he became accustomed to the eerie silence, not noticing it as much.

They'd just barely breached the jutsu level of their spar when nothing happened. Kakashi was tensed for an attack, but none came. He listened to the forest, but there was nothing but the wind rustling the leaves. He waited another few minutes, and still nothing happened. He lifted his hitai-ate, hoping to find the blonde's chakra signature, but even with the Sharingan there was nothing.

Naruto had completely disappeared from their fight.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Sasuke should be on his break, ne?" Naruto muttered to himself, wandering through the village. The first place he checked was Ichiraku, and when he didn't find the older teen, he checked all the places he could remember Sasuke going on his breaks. He huffed out a breath in frustration when he found the bench near the outskirts of town empty. He was about to declare his search over and devote the rest of the day to other, more fruitful pursuits, when he felt a hot breath blow across the back of his neck, tickling the short hair that was already standing on end. Out of well-trained habit he stood stock still. They were in the middle of some sort of war after all.

"You weren't looking for me, were you?" A voice asked sweetly, as hands were placed amiably on the blonde's shoulders.

"Why the hell would I look for you?" He asked, knowing it was Sasuke already and not bothering to turn around. He felt a slight hesitation in himself in wanting to see Sasuke's blood red eyes, even if they weren't spinning malevolently.

"Oh, I don't know." Sasuke replied teasingly, lifting his hands slightly so they only ghosted over the fabric of Naruto's hideously orange jacket. He could see the collar of the chuunin vest peaking out. "Maybe it has something to do with the reason you're not with Kakashi-san right now. But right now I don't care. You know you're going to pay for your overly loud mouth, right?" Naruto shook his head, trying to keep his thoughts off of the hands making their way slowly down his sleeves. He tilted his head back to look at Sasuke without having to turn all the way around. He was spending too much time with Shikamaru.

"What are you going to do about it?" He asked playfully, finally turning around fully and sticking out his tongue. Sasuke frowned and narrowed his eyes. Naruto wasn't surprised to find he couldn't tell if Sasuke was being serious or not.

"I'll have to keep that tongue busy in the future is all." He leaned forward and put his lips over Naruto's, pushing his tongue back into his mouth. They fought for dominance in the kiss for a moment before Naruto regained his bearings.

"Matte yo!!" He yelled angrily, pushing Sasuke back. "We're in public, asshole." He hissed under his breath, seeming to shrink into himself to avoid any possible attention. Sasuke tossed that thought over in his head for a moment before smirking evilly.

"So?" He asked, stepping forward. "Who's watching?" Naruto almost missed the last hand seals Sasuke was performing, before leaning forward in the puff of smoke to recapture Naruto's lips. His rival tried to back out of the kiss again, but when the smoke cleared and he saw that Sasuke had transformed his outward appearance, he sighed and just let it happen.

Sasuke was the one to finally break the kiss, transforming back and looking around. No one had given them a second glance. He looked back to his friend to see conflict in his blue eyes.

"We shouldn't do that, Sasuke." He whispered, ashamedly. "Best friends don't do that." The Uchiha's face hardened slightly at the younger teen's words, but he tried to ignore them.

"We're friends, plus a little extra, okay? Or do you really not want to kiss me?" Naruto looked at his feet and began fidgeting nervously.

"Kissing in itself is fine, but it's a pointless action between us." He sighed softly, but continued trying to explain himself. "It makes me feel like you almost care about me... and I don't like to lie to myself that way. Anything else, but that." Sasuke nodded and held his hand out, palm out.

"No kissing at all." He exclaimed stiffly. Naruto looked up, relief shining in his eyes.

"No, every so often is okay, but not like that." He placed his own hand over Sasuke's open one, smiling shyly to himself. It was an odd smile, not because of its bashfulness, but because it was one Sasuke never thought he would actually see. Naruto was truly smiling and it wasn't a mask he was hiding behind. "I guess it's a little too much for me."

"So how did you escape from Kakashi's clutches alive?" Sasuke stopped and looked Naruto over. "Never mind that, you don't look too badly damaged. Did you get the nice Kakashi today?" He asked stonily. Gone was Naruto's timid smile, replaced by his familiar amused grin.

"What time is it?" He looked up at one of the clocks that had been stuck randomly on a nearby building. "It's been almost fifteen minutes since I last saw Kakashi, he should be here any minute." Sasuke gave him a sceptical glare, but Naruto just continued to grin. "You'll see." He whispered, chuckling to himself. Sure enough, a couple of minutes later, Kakashi came strolling casually up to the pair, covered in minor burns, mud, leaves and twigs and looking like he was soaked with water, straight to the skin.

Sasuke turned to Naruto, surprise barely evident in his face, only to find the blonde trying desperately to hide his peals of laughter. He appeared to be near tears, he was laughing so hard. The dark haired genin returned his gaze to their sensei and saw that Kakashi didn't look too pleased with Naruto's mirth.

"You think this is funny?" He hissed between his teeth. Naruto looked up and stopped laughing suddenly, as though he'd only been faking it. He offered a smirk and a shrug.

"Of course not." He answered. "But I have to say I told you so. Imagine if I had been trying to kill you. Chances are you might be dead right now." Kakashi's face lost its anger and regained its infuriating indifference.

"You really think you are up to my level? A jounin? You're still just a genin." He exclaimed. Naruto seemed to have been expecting that jab and merely smirked.

"A very long time ago someone mentioned that Kabuto was about your level." He replied. "I used Rasengan on him when I was twelve and he was almost completely disabled." Kakashi's eye twitched, but Sasuke interrupted them both, looking only slightly curious.

"Rasengan?"

"Do you remember the move I used against you when you woke up in the hospital when we were twelve?" Naruto asked. Sasuke nodded in understanding, and the blonde returned his attention to Kakashi. "If I was able to do that kind of damage when I was twelve..." He trailed off suggestively. "I know you're a very respected teacher and you are at a level higher than I am right now, however you're not the right teacher for me. There's nothing more I can learn under your guidance. I need a teacher who reacts in the same ways that I would in battle. Plus, I need Jiraiya's training if I ever have to restrain Sasuke from trying to be a missing nin again." He laughed and punched Sasuke in the arm, earning himself a light glare at the insinuation.

"I suppose I could use the time off." Kakashi replied lightly. "You two never saw me if anyone from Tsunade asks." He commanded before disappearing, leaving both boys to their own devices.

"So I guess that gets me off the hook for training." Naruto grinned victoriously and turned to his friend. "Anything you want to do, now?"

"If you think you're better than Kakashi, spar with me." Sasuke offered. "Consider it an alternate to the sex thing. You did promise to help me become stronger in exchange for me staying in Konoha." Naruto crossed his arms and puffed out in mock anger.

"You mean you were using me?!" He screeched. "I'm crushed. And all this time I thought we were friends." He sighed dramatically and his shoulders drooped for effect. "I suppose I do owe you a couple." Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

"Only a couple?" He queried. "How many times have I had to help you out or save your life or lie for you or-" but Naruto held his hand up to stop him from continuing, rolling his eyes.

"I get it, jerk." He exclaimed fondly. "But how many times have I saved your ass?"

"How many times has it been your fault I needed it to be saved in the first place?"

"You don't know how many times you've ruined my life!" Naruto retorted, leaning closer, only barely registering that they were nearing an argument.

"You don't know how many times it's been you ruining my life. I've lost a lot of sleep over you, dobe." The blonde stepped back, a look of confusion washing over his face.

"Eh?" Sasuke took this as a sign of weakness and lunged in for the kill.

"Backing down from our fight, Naruto-chan?" He taunted. "That's why you started this argument, isn't it? To avoid having to fight with me?" His friend's jaw dropped and he nearly smirked at the offended look that clouded his blue eyes.

"I am not backing down!!!" He snarled back. "UZUMAKI NARUTO never backs down from a fight!!" He boasted and grabbed Sasuke's arm, leading him towards the training grounds were they had their first battle against Kakashi.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

It wasn't until almost a minute into their fierce battle that it occurred to the noisy blonde to ask the most obvious question.

"Weren't you supposed to be going back to the patrol route?" He asked, while dodging one of Sasuke's many high-kicks. The question didn't even make his rival stop to think of an answer. It was almost as though he'd been waiting for it to be brought up.

"Did you really forget we had a day off?" He sneered and twirled around, aiming a kunai for the middle of Naruto's ribs. His hand was grabbed before he could make contact and for a moment all fighting stopped. It was a stalemate. Their breathing was shallow and irregular and even though they'd been only going for a minute, and could go on for the next couple of days, they were putting all of their effort into their attacks.

"You mean Kakashi wasted my only holiday?!" Naruto exclaimed, not really sparing the energy to sound as upset as he should have. The question was left unanswered as they started up again, bouncing away from each other. Sasuke skidded to a halt before lunging back at his partner, dirt still unsettled from his attempt at stopping. He aimed at grabbing a handful of the blonde's hair, but came up with nothing but air as the young man gracefully twisted out of the way, just in time. Naruto stopped for a second and held up his kunai in front of his nose, blocking the nearly invisible needles from their path. They cluttered noiselessly to the grass.

In that second that Naruto had taken to disable Sasuke's attack, the Uchiha had been able to regroup and tackle him to the ground. They struggled, neither one gaining any advantage, as their kunai knives clashed together fiercely, until finally Sasuke's weapon was knocked from his hand. Naruto smirked up at his rival in victory, from his spot, pinned to the grass.

"You've got no more weapons, Uchiha-san." He exclaimed smugly. Sasuke didn't show any signs of despair though, and thoroughly caught the loudmouth off guard when he found himself suddenly in a fight for the last remaining kunai the pair had. The scuffle was short-lived though and Naruto felt his face being shoved into the dirt, his own kunai only millimetres from killing him. Sasuke was on his back and it was obvious that even without a weapon, the man had turned the tables on his rival.

The weight on his back shifted and suddenly there was a puff of breath on his ear, disturbing the small blonde hairs on the back of his neck. They were both still trying to catch their breaths.

"Not as... 'relieving' as I thought it would be, Uzumaki-san." He whispered softly. "It lacks the passion I need." Naruto blushed at the comment.

"And last time we did something like that in public, we were overheard." He replied. Sasuke laughed and stood up from his place, straddling Naruto's back. The blonde rolled over and accepted his helping hand.

"Maybe some other time, Naruto-kun." He smirked, declining the almost non-existent offer. "Save it for when we really need a release, ne?" His friend grinned and nodded, giving Sasuke a punch to the shoulder before picking up his fallen weapons.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sure enough, Sasuke and Naruto mutually took up the unsaid offer a few days later after a particularly rough lecture from Tsunade on the lack of effort being put into the patrols. The number of raids had been steadily increasing, and more and more injuries were counted from shinobi and villager alike. Tsunade had obviously been having a tough time, as well, so they were taking that into account as she berated them scathingly, but when she began picking on the members of Cell Seven, nerves started to break. It was a sore spot with all of the members, including Naruto and especially Kakashi, that it appeared that none of them had been promoted to chuunin yet.

"And Sasuke!" She fumed, condescendingly. "You could at least try and make an effort to look like you want to become a chuunin! Or do you want to be a genin the rest of your life?!" The comment had stunned everyone into silence, and for a moment guilt flashed across the Hokage's face. Sasuke's face betrayed nothing and, without a word between them, Cell Seven left the Hokage's office at the same time. After the teens had left, Kakashi held back for a moment and looked Tsunade straight in the eye.

"You of all people should know how hard they're trying." He said. "There is not one single other person in this room who can say otherwise." He shut the door behind him.

Sakura had gone off to work on a patrol of her neighbourhood, while Sasuke and Naruto found themselves locked in a heated battle on Sasuke's bed in the Uchiha home.

"She shouldn't have said that." Naruto exclaimed, lying belly up, with his head hanging off the side of the bed. He was lazily channel surfing on the TV beside Sasuke's bed after they had finished. "I don't care that she's Hokage, it was a low blow." He pressed the button and another show came on. The TV had fascinated Naruto the first few times he'd stayed over at Sasuke's house, but now he was used to the novelty and was just flipping through the channels out of habit.

"It doesn't matter." Sasuke replied. He was lying on his stomach, using Naruto's steadily rising and falling chest as a pillow, his cheek resting on Naruto's bare skin. He had his face turned to the TV, but had his eyes closed. Both men were only wearing their boxers. He felt Naruto's muscles tense as the blonde fought against gravity to nod. They lay there in a comfortable silence, until Naruto decided to open his mouth again.

"This thing that we're doing... I mean, us having sex..." Sasuke could hear that Naruto was having difficulty with his words. He smirked at his friend's unease with the subject he was trying to breach. "It doesn't mean we're that way, or anything does it?"

"What do you mean by 'that way'?" Sasuke asked tentatively, inwardly knowing.

"You know, gay, homosexual, preferring guys... that way." He sighed, surprised that he hadn't seen the question coming a long time ago, but he knew Naruto would want to talk about it sometime. When he considered the tone in Naruto's voice, he winced inwardly. It was almost like he was trying to get reassurance that at least one thing in his life was stable; that there was one constant in himself that he could rely upon.

The sincere question also reminded him that he couldn't allow himself to even consider getting too attached to his rival in that way. It would be too much of a distraction from a goal that he'd had for more than a decade. He almost couldn't remember a time before that goal had been burned into his consciousness.

He sighed again, remembering words he told Cell Seven when they had first come together under Kakashi. The restoration of his clan had always been a secondary dream, something that would be dealt with after Itachi was gone, but not before; one thing at a time. He furrowed his brow, realising that even if he killed Itachi he was never going to be able to allow himself to fall in love with Naruto, no matter if he really was 'that way'. For now, he would just have to live in the moment and worry about the consequences later. He didn't even think he was that attached to the blonde he was lying on.

Naruto sat up, and was surprised when Sasuke didn't even notice that his head had slipped down the tanned skin to rest in his friend's lap. He waved a hand over Sasuke's face, which was staring at the ceiling, noticing that he was completely lost in thought.

"Answer my question, jerk." Naruto exclaimed, pinching one of Sasuke's cheeks to get his attention. The Uchiha shook the thoughts from his head and smirked.

"This thing we have going on... 'us'... it doesn't mean we're gay." Sasuke replied, reassuringly. "Think about it, are you attracted to any other guy?" Naruto paused to think about that. He closed his eyes and pictured a number of the other chuunin and genin, including Shikamaru, Kiba, and even Shino, doing some of the things Sasuke did with him. He shuddered violently and gave a nervous burst of laughter. The thought of the bugs that he would wake up next to, freaked him out.

"Definitely not."

"Then it seems like you might just be Sasuke-sexual instead of homosexual."

"Yeah, right. You're so full of shit." Naruto leaned down and gave Sasuke's nose a quick kiss.

(End of Chapter)

To TKM: I agree that they're equal. That's most of the reason why I like them so much. Neither Sasuke nor Naruto seem to be more dominant than the other to me, solely because they keep fighting. If Naruto was a complete 'uke' he wouldn't constantly be challenging Sasuke for supremacy.

To The La/=/er: As always, it was a pleasure to read your review. I shouldn't take this long in the future, but I've been dealing with hectic issues lately (six whole days jammed with parties and such with my friends and then a trip). I really couldn't take having them fight with nothing but kunai and shuriken all the time, plus I thought the weapon looked like something Sasuke would be able to handle (having multiple uses in a battle). I'm glad that there are some people out there that enjoy the small details of the story just as much as the 'big picture'.

To Kyuubi-chan: The only reason I have 64 written already is because that was originally the first chapter. It was before I decided to expand it and start at the beginning.

To KageKitsune 16: The question about why Naruto's lying about the vest will be answered. That's all I'm saying.

To AkaNoShika: the spiky ball would be the mace. The kusarigama is a chain attached to the handle of a sickle. I suppose I should show a KakaIru argument to show you how being in the same room causes them to argue.

To Seraphina DW: I understand your squickyness over the whole casual sex relationship thing, and I don't plan on shoving pointless lemons in where ever I can. It's not really my style.

To MIA: The shinobi that beat up on Naruto got away. They left before anyone came.

To Ni9h7ki773n: If you could point out where the OOC-ness is I'd be glad to fix it when I come back around with the revised edition.


	53. The Politics of Sunagakure

You all now need to thank Mi-kun for two reasons. She's the reason this story is up so fast... we agreed that Monday would be my deadline. She's also the reason it's as long as it is. I originally had planned to keep the 'shower' scene for the next chapter, but she kept bugging me to write it because she wanted to read it, so here it is.

Yes, it is a citrus chapter, meaning has the full version. See my profile for the link.

Chapter Title: 53. The Politics of Sunagakure

It was a little later on in the week and Naruto had met up with Sasuke on his way home. It was nearly midnight, and without saying a word they both knew the other had had a particularly rough patrol, and both of them needed a little time away from the real world. Sasuke unlocked his door and took Naruto upstairs with him.

They had only just started to take what they had for granted. In the dark-haired genin's mind, although these moments were wonderful and gave him an intense feeling of pleasure, they meant nothing to him when it was just used as a normal thing. Only when it was truly needed did it feel different. Only when one of them truly needed the other was their joining meaningful. Sasuke put a hand on Naruto's that were unbuckling his pants and told him exactly that. For a moment his rival looked at him blankly before shame clouded his features and he looked to his bare feet. He apologized softly and took a step back.

"I don't want this becoming an everyday thing." Sasuke whispered. "Sure, we have rough days, but shouldn't this be saved for times when we really need it?" Naruto looked up and nodded.

"I get it." He grinned. "You want it so that if something big really does happen, the sex will still work as a reliever. If we do it too much it won't mean anything later, ne?" Sasuke nodded, offering a smirk.

"I'm surprised you got that so quickly, dobe."

"Mou, I would have thought after almost six years you would have grown out of calling me a dunce." He pouted comically.

"Of course not!" Sasuke exclaimed. "The nickname's kind of grown on me. You're my dobe, and no one will ever change that."

"Can I still stay over?" Naruto asked, bending over to tidy up his discarded clothing. He pulled off his orange pants and tossed them over one of the chairs in Sasuke's room, before going around to the rest of his clothes and picking them up as well.

"Sure." Sasuke shrugged, doing the same with his clothes, only he folded his shorts neatly and placed them on the dresser gently. He turned around and caught himself before he laughed out loud at the sight of his best friend leaping through the air in only his boxers to land on his wonderfully plush bed with a light poof, the comforter surrounding him cozily. He walked over and pulled back his covers, sliding in beside the loud-mouthed ninja.

"Can I watch a little TV before I go to sleep or will it bug you?" Naruto asked, clambering under the covers of, what he dubbed 'his' side of the bed, tossing his legs over Sasuke's lap.

"Sure." Sasuke shrugged again. He was used to the noise and he was used to the unnecessary touching and it didn't bother him at all any more. What did bother him was when Naruto couldn't settle on one specific channel, and he mentioned it after ten minutes of rapid channel surfing.

"Can't you just pick a channel and watch it?!" He exclaimed roughly, pinching a bare calf under the blankets. Naruto yelped and glared at him accusingly.

"No, there's nothing on."

"Then why are you watching it?" Naruto shrugged lazily, showing how much time he'd been spending with Shikamaru.

"Bored."

"You're supposed to be sleeping!"

"So?"

"How could you be bored?"

"Nothing to do." He grinned. Sasuke felt his eye starting to twitch in anger and he balled his fists.

"You're so annoying!!!" He yelled. It always seemed to amuse his rival when he managed to make him explode like that.

"But you love me anyways." He cooed lovingly, pursing his lips in a dramatic kiss. Sasuke let out a quick laugh and shoved Naruto's face aside.

"No, I'm just using you for the sex." He retorted with a smug smirk playing with his lips. They had spent so much time together, in these witty arguments, that Naruto didn't even pause to think of a comeback, one was already coming out of his mouth.

"Well, you did come to the best!" He puffed up his chest egotistically.

"Ha!"

"Hey, I take offense to that 'Ha!'. You think you're the best just because everyone else would die to screw you? Or be screwed by you?"

"Does that include you?"

"Of course not!" Naruto laughed. "But that's only because I'm already screwing you. I really don't see what all the fuss is about, I mean, sure you've got a great body, but..." But he wasn't able to finish his remarks, stopped by a pillow to the face. The rest of his response came out muffled. They batted at each other playfully for a few minutes before Naruto grabbed both of their pillows and gave his friend a solemn look.

"But, seriously." He exclaimed softly. "My only regret is your eyes. I wish I could have saved you from that." Sasuke smirked, a little uneasy with the sudden seriousness of his friend's voice.

"Any particular reason?" Naruto grinned and raised a hand to his rival's cheek, brushing some of the hair from his face.

"You look too much like Itachi." He whispered softly, twirling some of the black strands between his fingers, thoughtfully. "I mean, just the other day, I saw you walking with Sakura towards the centre of the village, and I could have sworn on my life you were Itachi." He laughed at how stupid it sounded now. "You even bought her an apple. Of course, I know it couldn't have been Itachi, but it was still kind of weird." Sasuke nodded but remained quiet, not commenting on Naruto's observation.

If he had opened his mouth he might have told his friend that he'd been away that whole day and hadn't talked to Sakura in almost an entire week. He didn't want to alert Naruto to the fact that he might just have seen the older Uchiha. No one would know until he could do something about his brother's presence. He had to face the man on his own... alone.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

The new Kazekage rolled his head on his neck, getting used to the feel of the large hat on his head. He wasn't paying the least bit of attention to the discussion his advisors were carrying on, mostly because he knew what they were going to tell him. The raids they'd been organizing against Konohagakure were extraordinarily successful and the ninjas of the crumbling village were showing no signs of retaliation. Everything was going better than planned.

"Kazekage-sama, the allies are getting restless." Temari spoke up, suddenly, attracting his attention.

"What do you mean?" She frowned at him, knowing he hadn't been paying attention, but addressed the entire room.

"Those smaller villages that have sided with us are still unsure of what they should do in terms of this war you're starting with Konoha." She replied. "They want to know if there's anything they should be doing beside sitting back and watching." The Kazekage smirked, pointing to a small map.

"Tell them we just want them to sit back and wait for our signals." He responded. "Amegakure should hear from me soon on our plans to invade from the west. If you have to let Takigakure and Kusagakure know the plan as well, do it discreetly. I don't want Stone to know what we have planned. They're not to know that we're behind these attacks. It may affect the larger powers too early. I want to be sure of my win before Konoha has the ability to manipulate the other countries into allying with them." A snort sounded from the shadows of the office, and the Kazekage knew the culprit wanted to be heard. "You have something to say, Gaara?" He asked politely. The teen nodded in the shadows. He preferred being in the darkness, not because of the dramatic and psychological effect it had on the council members, but because if he stayed there long enough he could almost pretend he was sleeping.

"Konohagakure has never needed to manipulate its allies." He remarked. "You are making this war more personal than it has to be." One of the older men stood up angrily, slamming his fist on the table.

"This is not a personal war, brat! You shouldn't be involving yourself in politics if you don't know everything that is going on. This is what Konoha deserves for the assassination of our former Kazekage. If you had any respect or commitment to this village you would be backing this campaign fully." Gaara merely shook his head.

"It is you who doesn't think about the bigger picture." He snarled. "They had nothing to do with the death of the Kazekage. Everyone knows it was Orochimaru who killed him on the way to the chuunin exams, and yet you still choose to side with his village." He coughed a little, looking directly at his sister before continuing. "Sound doesn't even have a clear leader. Ever since Orochimaru's death, they've been running around like chickens with their heads cut off."

"All the more reason for us to take them under our wings." Another elderly man spoke up.

"Do you not have any respect for your father, Gaara-kun?" The Kazekage asked. "For the dead? It should have been obvious that Konoha was behind his murder when they had Orochimaru-sama killed as well."

"I don't see why I should feel any sort of allegiance to a man who ordered me killed." Gaara replied coldly. "He wasn't much of a father to us, so I don't understand why you still choose to follow in his footsteps, Kankuro." His brother tilted the Kazekage hat upwards a little to glare at his insolent younger brother.

"I may not have liked the man, but he was this village's ruler. Before he was murdered, he had planned to over throw Konoha. I'm merely following through with his plans."

"That man was not our father; it was one of Orochimaru's disguises."

"That's what all the villagers from Konoha think. I would accuse you of treason, if it weren't for the amazingly accurate information you gave us about Akatsuki. Who knew the assassin group would be so willing to help us?" Gaara rolled his eyes in response.

"It's not a secret of their desire to acquire Uzumaki Naruto." He exclaimed. "Plus, having the elder Uchiha on our side puts the younger brother out of commission. He's been so focused on killing that man, he's spent his whole life preparing for it. Last time they met he was so blinded by rage that he ended up in a hospital bed until they brought back Tsunade-hime." Kankuro shot his younger brother a smug look.

"Well, I wonder when we should have our ninjas joining the Grass troops in the raids. Surely the demon is getting a little thirsty for some blood."

"Why don't we see by spilling a bit of your blood?" Gaara retorted, curling his upper lip viciously. The ruler only laughed, not afraid of the teen a bit, waving off the sudden tenseness in the postures of the rest of the council members.

"Is that any way to treat your older brother?" He laughed. "I am Kazekage after all and you're nothing but a shinobi. You have to follow my orders just like everyone else."

"I'm no shinobi." Gaara muttered. "I'm just your little death machine."

"The best we've got." Kankuro countered.

"But the last time I was used against Naruto, I failed. That was nearly six years ago. He's probably even stronger now. He is no pushover."

"Well, then we'll see how Akatsuki deals with him, and if anything happens out of the ordinary, we'll attack him where he's the most vulnerable. Everyone has a weakness, even the fabled Kitsune."

"I don't see anything here that could be considered ordinary to begin with." Gaara snapped. "Besides, there's nothing in revenge, especially when you're going after the wrong people. You're using the village's bitterness over the loss of their Kazekage to turn them against people who did no wrong."

"Since when did you become the preacher of nobleness, little brother?" Kankuro said, his younger brother's resistance getting on his nerves. "You hated the man to begin with, so of course you wouldn't want to avenge his wrongful death."

"He wasn't much of a father to begin with." The older brother clenched his fists with rage and counted to ten in his head. No one else in the room, save Temari, were willing to even breathe at the moment, afraid to attract the wrath of either angry young men.

"Your orders are to go to Konoha and learn Uzumaki Naruto's weaknesses and work with Akatsuki to eliminate him." Kazekage hissed through clenched teeth. "You are to use as little of our shinobi as possible, I don't want any more casualties than are needed." He nodded to his older sister, who rose from her seat. "Temari, go with Gaara to make sure he follows orders." He casually waved his hand dismissing his siblings from the rest of the meeting. They both left without another word of protest, leaving Kankuro with the rest of his council. He sighed deeply.

"You did good handling your little brother, Kazekage-sama." One of the men congratulated him. He looked up at the men and shook his head.

"But what if Gaara is right? What if Konohagakure really wasn't responsible for his death?" He asked worriedly. They merely grinned at him reassuringly.

"You're thinking too much about this. You were right on this issue. The demon was just putting ludicrous notions in your head. It's too many what ifs. What if Orochimaru had killed your father and assumed the roll of the Kazekage? What if he was the one who told us to attack Konoha? What if? The truth of the matter is he's trying to exert himself in a world where he doesn't belong."

"The demon is obviously trying to control you and this country, but luckily for you, he's not very well versed in Wind's politics. He's a demon. Demons are not meant to control, they're meant to be controlled. Your order was a perfect one, Kazekage-sama. It shows that you are still in control of everything. Don't let your brother manipulate you into feeling pity for the Leaf. It's just what they want." Kankuro frowned, unsure of his earlier actions.

"Are you sure I was right to order Naruto executed?"

"Of course, Kazekage-sama."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"He's a proud man."

"And his pride will get himself killed along with a bunch of others." Gaara glared at his older sister. "He doesn't deserve to be Kazekage. If you haven't forgotten, we used to be allied with the Leaf, until this mess with Orochimaru. The Kazekage was proven to have been killed before we reached Konoha, that should prove that-" Temari held up a hand to stop him.

"Just forget that for now, Gaara-kun." She exclaimed stiffly. "Right now all we need to do is recover from the loss of our leader. We don't want the other countries to believe we're weak and start to think they can bully our people."

"Like what Kankuro is doing right now?"

"Gaara."

"Why can't we just help the leaf instead of fighting them?" He asked. "They're not our enemies. Why can't he see that?" His sister smiled softly and patted him on the shoulder. She was no longer tall enough to pat his head affectionately without the awkwardness.

"I believe you." She whispered. "But I seem to be the only one. For now let's just follow orders. We're ninja, not politicians. Stop trying to be something you're not."

"Do you also want me to stop trying to be a good person?" He asked coldly. "Uzumaki showed me something I could have, because I had you. I now have a life outside the hatred. Don't you dare make me give it up."

"I wouldn't dream of it, but please don't try to push things too hard here." She exclaimed.

"I'll do this one thing for you, but know this, I will not be responsible for the death of Uzumaki Naruto. That's the Kazekage who will have to get his hands dirty with that mess. I will not take the blame and neither will the Shukaku." Temari nodded in agreement.

"Just make sure you don't screw up, little brother." He gave her a cynical look.

"I wasn't made to screw up, remember? I'm the best." His grin sent a shiver down the blonde girl's back and she couldn't help but wonder at her brother's words. There was something between the lines that she didn't understand or catch, and, knowing Gaara, it would put the fate of the war solely in his unstable hands.

"Watch him for me." She exclaimed to the Anbu that were hidden around her. The group bowed politely before disappearing in a whirlwind of sand.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

It unnerved Sasuke to know that Naruto had seen Itachi in the village. He eventually found himself wandering the streets after his patrol, looking for any signs of his brother, hoping it was just the blonde's overactive imagination. The streets had been raid-free for the last few days, and there wasn't any word of the assassin group in or near the area of Konohagakure. His rival had just been mistaken. He sighed to himself, turning away from the vendor's cart that Naruto had 'seen' Sasuke buying Sakura's apple from and bumped head first into someone. He stepped back, not really looking at the man he'd hit and continued walking, tossing an apology over his shoulder.

He was halfway back to his house when he realized the man he'd crashed into was following him. He halted and spun around, but no one was there.

"You've been looking for someone, little brother?" A voice whispered, blowing hot breath across the back of Sasuke's neck. He turned around again and found his brother standing with his body pressed flush against his, grinning smugly.

"So Naruto did see you." He exclaimed, stepping backwards, uncomfortable with the elder Uchiha's closeness. His observation earned him a laugh from Itachi.

"I see your little lover has been keeping you up to date."

"He's not my lover, bastard."

"You're lying, little brother. It's really amusing to see that you truly have followed in my footsteps." He raised Sasuke's chin with a delicate finger. "You have my wonderful eyes, the blood lust for killing. If you had only killed the boy before you fell in love with him, you would have been a perfect little copy." He smirked, not at all offended when Sasuke slapped his hand away violently.

"I will never be as horrible as you." Sasuke retorted, growing angrier by the second. "When you are finally breathing your last breaths, you'll realize that you were never all that great for the Uchiha family. I'll make you see that I'm not living in your shadow anymore, and you'll be the first and last person I kill in cold blood. I will never be like you." Itachi ignored the denial.

"I see your hatred has grown a little since the last time we met. Maybe this time you won't end up in a hospital bed, depending on your little lover to save your life. Maybe this time you really will live up to the family name and not be the pathetic child you were last time." Sasuke bit down on his lip to hold back his anger and nearly lost his footing when the curse seal on his neck pulsed roughly and suddenly. He pulled out a kunai and sent his Sharingan eyes spinning wildly.

"This time only one of us will walk away alive, and I'll do everything to make sure it's me and not you." He growled, preparing to lunge. Itachi just shook his head.

"There's a time and place for everything." He smiled softly and exploded without warning. Sasuke jumped back, startled, just before he could get hurt. He coughed for a moment and waved the smoke from his eyes, cursing under his breath. His brother had used an exploding clone as a decoy.

"Why don't you fight me now, coward!!?" He yelled into the air. From a nearby rooftop, Itachi watched his little brother shouting angrily and shook his head, disappointedly.

"You still aren't ready to face me if you're armed with nothing but childish insults." He whispered to himself. "But, no matter. I'll just have to force you to become ready by destroying everything you hold dear, including your lover." He nodded to the masked hunter-nin standing beside him. "He's not to be touched, you hear? If Sasuke is to be killed, it will be by my hands only. You tell Akatsuki that he's mine and if anyone wants to challenge my authority, I'll be only too happy to oblige." The hunter-nin nodded in understanding and disappeared off the roof. Itachi looked back at the streets to find his brother sprinting away from his earlier destination, Sharingan eyes dead focused on his new destination, and he didn't look too happy.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

By the time Sasuke arrived in front of Naruto's door, he was beyond counseling. He had reached and surpassed his boiling point, and was seconds away from beating the crap out of the next living thing he set his eyes on. Of course, Sasuke still held on to the last shred of his control, unwilling to let it go until the second he laid eyes on his friend. Only in Naruto's presence would he allow himself to explode.

He raised a hand to knock, but realized he didn't have the patience to wait for an answer, and instead slammed his shoulder into the door, knocking it open. He zoned straight in on the sound of the shower running and made his way to the bathroom, not bothering to watch what he knocked over on his way there. He kicked open the door, the only warning Naruto had, before the blonde found himself slammed into the tiled wall, just under the spray of the shower head.

He tried to turn his head around, whimpering at the pain shooting through his skull, but all he got in return was a dizzying feeling as nausea swept through him.

"Sasuke?" He whispered, not sure if his rival could even hear him. He caught the look of rage on the genin's face and everything seemed to make sense. He fought back Sasuke for a second, just enough time to turn around before grabbing Sasuke's collar and pulling his body back under the hot spray of water, crushing their lips together.

They moved away from the wall for a moment, before Sasuke put his weight into Naruto again, slamming their bodies back against the wall, his clothes now slick with water. The blonde gasped in pain, and moaned into the kiss when he felt his head hit the wall with another sickening crack. His sounds of pain fell on deaf ears, as Sasuke couldn't hear anything through the pounding of blood in his ears.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Time seemed to stop as they both rode out the waves of pleasure, only to have the moment ruined when Naruto's leg finally gave out, sending both of them crashing to the shower floor.

"Itai." Naruto whispered, pulling away from Sasuke and rubbing the back of his sore head. It had already begun sealing up, but it would have a bruise for a while. He pulled his now weakened body into a sitting position and looked up to see Sasuke bent over his legs on his hands and knees; the same position he'd fallen in. His head was bent and his hair fell in a dark curtain over his eyes, blocking the blonde from seeing any emotions.

"Sasu-"

"Gomen nasai." Sasuke interrupted. For a moment, Naruto was confused by the apology, until his attention was brought to a more pressing situation. He'd just run out of his week's worth of hot water and the once hot liquid was now ice cold.

He reached up and turned off the faucet, leaning up and pulling down a couple of towels. He threw one over Sasuke's shoulders and pulled the exhausted teen out of the tub, wrapping his own towel around his waist. It seemed as though Sasuke had just wiped out all of his energy in that one vent.

"Come on." Naruto exclaimed softly, rubbing the towel over the taller genin's shoulders and pulling him towards his bedroom. "I'll lend you some clothes."

After drying himself and Sasuke off and hopping quickly into some fresh clothes, Naruto crashed exhaustedly onto his bed, watching out of the corner of his eye as Sasuke stayed where he had been left after changing.

"You can sit on the bed too, Sasuke." Naruto exclaimed, sitting up slightly. Sasuke sat down on the end of the blonde's bed and curled up into himself, sparking Naruto's never ending curiosity. The younger teen managed to pull himself onto his hands and knees and crawled over to his friend. "Daijoubu?" He asked, worry creasing his forehead. Sasuke flinched.

"Daijoubu." He replied.

"Bull shit." Naruto exclaimed roughly. "What's wrong, now?" He desperately wanted to force Sasuke to look at him, but he needed to know what was wrong with his friend first. Maybe it had something to do with why he'd been so angry earlier.

"Gomen nasai, gomen nasai." Sasuke repeated over and over, pain splashing across his features.

"For what?!" His rival was starting to get irritated.

"I did to you the same thing Orochimaru did." Sasuke refused to look at his friend. "I raped you, oh god." He held a hand to his mouth as he said the words, nauseated by just the thought of his betrayal. Naruto let out a bark of laughter.

"Sasuke, you can't rape the willing." He grinned.

"But you weren't! I saw you bleeding and I just kept going."

"Shut up for a second." Naruto demanded, putting a hand on one of Sasuke's knees. "As soon as I saw you practically kick down my bathroom door, I knew you needed this. If I hadn't been willing, I would have put up much more of a fight." Sasuke looked up and nodded, relaxing his position a little more. "Plus, it's only right that we share all of our firsts with each other."

"Firsts?"

"Yeah, first kiss, first lover, first blow job." Naruto listed on his fingers. "Now you're the first person I allowed to fuck me."

"How crude." Sasuke muttered, commenting on Naruto's word choice. The blonde beamed proudly.

"So are you going to tell your best friend what got you so worked up that you had to come straight over and pound me into the shower wall?"

"I saw Itachi." He explained. Naruto swore under his breath.

"No wonder you were so angry. What happened?"

"Nothing." Sasuke let one of his hands fall to the comforter they were sitting on and began tracing the light blue stitching with his fingers. "I wish I'd moved to stick a kunai in his heart, though." His friend chuckled softly.

"He has none." Sasuke looked grim. "Don't worry so much. You will avenge your clan and Itachi will be gone, leaving you to move on and have that family you wanted to restore your clan." Both teens felt a twinge at the reminder Naruto unwittingly brought back up. Sasuke dropped his gaze to his fingers on the comforter and stayed silent for a moment, stretching his legs out so he could be a little more comfortable.

Without a second thought, Naruto lay down his head on Sasuke's lap and sighed deeply, stretching out on the bed like a lazy cat.

"I hope you're not getting too stressed out thinking about Itachi right now." Naruto exclaimed, stifling a yawn. "'Cause I'm so tired after our shower that I probably couldn't even lift my han... to...... myself, much less you!" He exclaimed, continuing to talk even when Sasuke whacked him in the face with the pillow. He groaned, trying to hide his smirk and continued hitting Naruto.

"Is that seriously all you think about?" He asked incredulously. "Don't answer that! I don't want to know." They both chuckled, not having the energy to do much else.

(End of Chapter)

Yay! A plot in a lemon. Anyways. I tried to change the markers that divide scene changes, cause I figure ff.n isn't going to help me any... (bastards).

To Seph Lorraine and all the people that said the same thing: I'm sorry if it looked like I was copying something you had already done. I've honestly never even heard of that story before. I was just trying to come up with a term that would make it okay for Naruto to like Sasuke. I've honestly never seen anyone else use the same theory... so I doubt it's a trend, just a coincidence. (In my case anyways)

To Seraphina DW: I think he was more worried that he would be found out.

To AkaNoShika: I didn't really notice how cocky I made Naruto in that chapter, but when I think about the near future, it seems kind of ironic. Don't worry, he'll be taken down a peg or two in the near future.

To SpoonNinja: No, Sasuke's never actually come right out and said he was in love with Naruto.


	54. Precious Moments

Whee! It's done! It's finally finished (Note: The author is merely talking about chapter 54, not the whole entire story)

Chapter Title: 54. Precious Moments

It happened when Iruka was walking out of Tsunade's office. Not being gifted with eyes of either Hyuuga or Uchiha clans, he had no real way of knowing what would happen when he opened the door. He had just had a meeting with the honoured woman, one that ended with her sighing in exhaustion and him pinching the bridge of his scarred nose in frustration. No one ever left her office on a high note these days. The war was looming too closely for anything good to come from the Hokage's mouth these days. He pushed open the door, to leave, when he felt a body crush against the weight of the solid oak doors. He quickly exclaimed his apologies and shut the door behind him, wondering what unlucky person he'd hit. It wasn't like he had swung the doors open that fast either.

Nevertheless, he was shocked to find the man holding his nose to be none other than Kakashi himself.

"You know, I never really believed Naruto when he said he got you with that old chalkboard eraser trick, until now." He chuckled softly. Kakashi shot him a look that said he was hardly amused and pulled his hand away, satisfied to see no signs of blood.

"I'd love to stay and catch up on the good old times with you, Iruka-san, but I've got to talk to Tsunade about some of the reports from the front lines." He shuffled his feet nervously and tried to step past the chuunin teacher, but Iruka had other ideas, and followed his movements, blocking the way.

"With this war looming, there's really not going to be a chance to talk past right here and now." He exclaimed. "The only other time would be after this is all behind us, and you know as well as I do that these things don't always solve themselves within a couple of days. They take months, years, decades." He grabbed Kakashi's upper arm. "I truly am crazy for liking someone I barely know, but it's not for lack of trying. Maybe I should be more like Gai-san in order to be near you more often." He chuckled at the grimace that settled on the jounin's face at the comment, but didn't say anything to take it back. Looking like he just remembered something else, Iruka pulled a present from his pocket.

"I know your birthday isn't for another month," he paused to think about it. "Yeah, exactly one month, but just consider it an early birthday gift. Go ahead, open it." Kakashi frowned at the black box in his hands, trying to remind himself that they were both fighting on the same side and to stop being so suspicious. He lifted the lid and stared in shock at the book that was carefully nestled in the white wrapping paper. He pushed back the flimsy sheets to reveal a hardcover book with the first page autographed by Jiraiya. He recognised it as book one of the sennin's new series.

"I remembered when Gai bought you books two and three and I thought you'd like to start reading it from the beginning. I talked with Jiraiya-san the other day, and..." He paused, blushing deeply at the thought of what he was about to admit; the lengths he would go to for Kakashi. "I asked him if he would write another series similar to the one you were so fond of all those years ago. Of course, you'll have to wait until after we survive the war, but he agreed, so maybe I'll have another present for you on your birthday... or if the war lasts longer, at least something for next year." He beamed proudly. "Will you at least say something?" He asked, poking Kakashi's hand that was holding the forgotten reports.

"Thank you, Iruka." Kakashi managed to exclaim, still slightly shocked that someone would make so much bother over one person. "Would you like to go for an ice cream?" He asked. The chuunin brightened up considerably and nodded once.

"Love to." Kakashi dropped the report folder at the door and knocked once before leaving with Iruka, assuming the Hokage would receive the report he was supposed to deliver to her in person.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Ice cream for all of my youthful team!" Gai cheered, handing the cones to Neji and TenTen. They took their respective cones and sat down on a bench to wait for their sensei and Lee to join them.

"How's life, Neji-kun?" TenTen asked. The Hyuuga shrugged noncommittally. She frowned, but tried again. "I heard you've been spending more time with Hinata-chan, ne?" He nodded.

"She's my cousin." Her eye twitched at his quietness, but continued to try to make conversation.

"How did she take her break up with Naruto? I haven't talked to her for a while." He shot her an offended glare, but shrugged.

"She's doing fine. She's the one who ended it, not Uzumaki." Gai came over with Lee, both laughing boisterously at a joke one of them had been telling.

"Isn't it wonderful that we're here all together?" Gai exclaimed, holding up his cone in a toast. Lee and TenTen clinked their cones with his, but Neji just gave them an odd look and continued licking his vanilla cone.

"It's odd for us all to be together after we split ways, becoming chuunin." TenTen exclaimed. "Sad to say, but I actually missed you guys!" She reached across and mussed up Lee's bowl-cut hair.

"Of course you did, TenTen-chan!" Lee laughed, not bothered by the gesture. "But we'll always be a team, no matter if we are split up." They all nodded at this and Neji smiled softly. "Plus, if we don't keep in contact, how am I going to keep tabs on how Neji-kun is progressing?!" He raised the cone into the air.

"You'll never be able to keep up." Neji remarked amusedly.

"So how are things between you and the youthful flower of my rival?" Gai asked suddenly, turning to his young student.

"I think she's still in love with Sasuke, she talks about him constantly, but I'm finally going to let it be." He smiled sadly. "I know she may get hurt in the end, but I'm through trying to force her to love me. It's not that I've given up!" He waved his hands in front of his teacher when he saw that gleam in the older man's eyes. "It's just that my goals have changed. I'll be happy if she's happy, and if her life falls apart, I know I'll be there for her no matter what." He grinned happily at his epiphany. Neji smiled in acknowledgement and stood up.

"I'm going to get another ice cream." He said and walked over to the vendor, his ice cream still unfinished in his bandaged hand. He paid the man for another vanilla cone and walked over to where he had spotted his cousin sitting by herself.

"Busy?" He asked, offering her the extra cone. She looked up at him as he loomed over her shoulders and smiled brightly.

"Nope!" She exclaimed, nodding to her own team mates who had just left her, Kiba dragging Shino away for some canine mischief with a beautiful local girl. He handed her the cone, ignoring her team mate's antics, and sat down on the stone steps leading away from the little ice cream shop. "Neji, can I ask you a question?"

"What kind of question?" He replied.

"I was just wondering about how you've been treating me over the last few years." She used her free hand to push her fingers together nervously. Old habits died hard.

"You're complaining." Neji stated, his voice devoid of feeling, making him a little harder to read.

"No, I'm just curious." She exclaimed. "I've always wondered what turned your feelings around. I can remember a time when you wanted nothing more than to get rid of me. Is it because of my break up with Naruto that you're being nice now?" He turned to her and offered a smile.

"Not this time." He answered. "To be honest, it really wasn't you who I wanted to kill, it was what you represented." He explained and took a lick of his ice cream. "The curse of the branch house. I blamed it for everything; I blamed you for it all." He lowered his gaze to his lap, suddenly aware of his cousin's comforting hand on his shoulder.

"You do know that there will never come a time when I'd even think of having you kill yourself for the main house, right?" He looked up into her familiar white eyes and saw worry all over her face. "I don't believe in the division our ancestors placed on our family. You're my cousin, and I look up to you for strength." He smiled again and nodded. They continued eating their treats in silence until Hinata asked another question.

"So you're really okay about our break up, now?" He looked up, confused for a moment before remembering about her recent relationship with Naruto.

"Yes. It wasn't meant to be." She giggled as her cousin slipped into his old 'destiny' routine. As much as Naruto had changed his mind, he still believed there were some things fated to be, or not be, as the case was.

"I just wish I hadn't been so stupid to try and change so much about him." She bit down on the cone, chewing thoughtfully. "It's almost like they're fated to be together. I never even noticed how much Naruto depended on Sasuke until then."

"I don't think they're destined." Neji exclaimed, his cone already finished. Hinata turned her head to him, the look in her eyes demanding he explain himself. "Uchiha is too possessive over Uzumaki. He treats him like property, not like a friend or lover. He is jealous over everyone he sees around his rival who he thinks might have a chance to steal the boy from him. He doesn't treat Naruto the way he should be treating him."

"Just because he doesn't quite like you?"

"No, I honestly don't think he deserves to have someone like that in his life if he isn't going to treat him with respect. I've never trusted him." Hinata sighed, realising she was never going to win an argument with her cousin.

"So when are you going to find yourself someone?" She asked.

"When I feel like it." He replied.

"Does that mean 'when fate sends someone'?" He gave her a hard look that wasn't too effective with the bemused smile that crept across his face. She laughed at the expression it made.

"Stupid idiot, Konohamaru." Kiba grumbled under his breath, walking back to Hinata. Shino followed behind him, expression hidden behind his glasses and jacket collar.

"What happened, Kiba-kun?" Hinata asked, moving over a bit so the boy could flop down on the steps beside her. Neji looked only mildly interested.

"You know the girl Kiba dragged me over to talk to?" Shino asked. Hinata nodded. "It turned out to be Konohamaru in a jutsu." Kiba was still muttering under his breath, bright red from embarrassment.

"I should strangle Naruto-kun for teaching him that." He huffed, standing up again and dragging Shino over to the ice cream stand for some of the frozen stuff themselves.

"Kiba-kun!" Hinata called over her shoulder. The young man turned back at her voice. "Your sister is over there eating with Kurenai-sensei, in case you wanted to know." Looking over, he spotted his sister and her large beast of a dog sitting on a bench chatting amicably with his old teacher. He grinned and ran over, Akamaru safely perched on his head.

"Oi, Sensei! 'Nee-chan!" He greeted them. Kurenai smiled at his appearance and nodded in greeting. His sister stood up and punched him in the shoulder, laughing. Akamaru barked once but did nothing more to protect his master.

"Some guard dog you turned out to be." Kiba grumbled, rubbing his sore arm and offering a lick of his ice cream to his best friend.

"Kurenai-san was just telling me about the time you..." Kiba winced, knowing anything Kurenai was telling his sister was not good.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Konohamaru was still howling with laughter at tricking the dog-boy and his bug friend. If it hadn't been for Akamaru, he might have been able to go all the way with the prank. Might. He also had to answer to Moegi, and if she was ever upset with him, Udon was no help.

"This is part of the reason you failed the chuunin exam!" She complained, pulling at her pigtails. "Maybe if you stopped pulling pranks and started training and studying, you'd be able to pass!" Konohamaru shot her a glare.

"And what's your excuse for failing?" He muttered under his breath.

"I was pulled back because of you!" She yelled, smacking him over the head. "Because our team isn't completely in synchronization, me and Udon are being pulled back to your level. Baka!!" She really didn't feel that way, but with the lack of brains Konohamaru had, she had no other option than to act like Sakura. True, she was the brains of the group, and Konohamaru acted more like his idol every day, but no matter what she tried, her crush never seemed to look at her the way Naruto used to ogle Sakura. "How do you expect to become a respectable ninja for the girl of your dreams if you're stuck as a genin for the rest of your life?!"

"You don't know what you're talking about." The teen stuck his tongue out at Moegi. "Kaede will like me no matter what kind of Ninja I am, and just because I failed one exam, doesn't mean I can't pass another one. If you hadn't noticed, Naruto is still a genin and he's one of the strongest shinobi I know." Moegi felt her eye twitch at the reminder of Konohamaru's childhood crush, who had left Konohagakure many years ago.

"Speaking of our honoured leader, where do you think he could be?" Udon cut in, changing the subject before either hot-headed teen could take their argument further.

"Maybe he's on a patrol." Konohamaru replied, looking around to see if he wasn't at the ice cream shop. "I'll go see if anyone's seen him!" He exclaimed happily and took off from the Konohamaru Corps. Udon put a hand on Moegi's shoulder and patted it gently.

"He needs to pull tricks like Oiroke no Jutsu in order not to become a hardened shinobi." He told her. "It separates him from the cold killer a ninja is supposed to be." She smiled sadly, nodding in agreement.

"I know."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

In the long grass on the hill behind the ever popular ice cream shop, two generations of Nara men were lounging, enjoying the entertainment the over head wisps of clouds were providing. It was good as neither had spent much time together in the past few years.

"Hey, do you see that one?" Shikamaru pointed at a particular shape in the sky. "It reminds me a little of the remnants of mom's cooking." His father snickered softly as he caught sight of the fluffy explosion.

"I don't think she'd like hearing you say that. I'd be the one getting in trouble. She always was a troublesome woman." Shikamaru turned and looked at his father's profile.

"All women are troublesome, including mom." They both chuckled for a moment before returning their attention to the clouds, basking in the warmth of the sun on their lazy faces.

"I used to think that way too, but sometimes it's more tiresome if you avoid them your whole life." Shikato murmured a few minutes later, shifting in the grass so he was lying with his arms propped behind his head. They both sighed, thinking of the inevitable.

"Did you always want to be a shinobi?" Shikamaru asked his father, turning his head to the side for a quick glance.

"Nope." His reply was quicker than he expected of the older Nara. "But I realised earlier on that it provided me with the easiest lifestyle."

"Fighting is easy?"

"No, of course not. Neither is killing. I mean, with my life. Spending so much time with the people I love when I get breaks from missions, being around my friends when I'm on missions."

"But we haven't seen you in a while since the war started." Shikamaru furrowed his brow and glared at a passing bit of fluff that called itself a cloud.

"That's strictly because we're at war." Shikato replied, sighing deeply. "It's not always going to be like this. There's not always going to be wars. Actually, there's only been one major one in your lifetime, not including these recent attacks, and that was with a demon torturing the village. In your eighteen years, you've barely been witness to much troublesome events. Anything else would provide me with more hassle."

"Something's always been bothering me." Shikamaru started, struggling for the right words. "I thought Tsunade had been informed a while ago that Sand was an ally of ours... didn't a reconnaissance mission report that Gaara, the new Kazekage, had planned to side with us?" Shikato thought about it for a moment before frowning.

"I'm not sure anymore."

They stayed in silence on the hill watching as cloud after fluffy cloud passed over them in ever changing shapes until two large shadows covered their faces and blocked their view. They both blinked the same funny way; closing their eyes slowly and then scrunching up their noses as they opened them again.

The elder Akimichi nudged his son, looking at the boy expectantly. Choji looked at his father reluctantly, and kept his hands firmly hidden behind his back. Without further talk, both boys' father's left them alone, Shikato beginning to lick at the ice cream Chomaru had handed him as a sign of their friendship.

When both adults were out of sight and earshot, Choji pulled the pillowcase from behind his back and offered it apologetically to his best friend.

"Sorry." He mumbled, smiling softly. Shikamaru sat up and accepted the pillow.

"You avoided me all week just because I was right and you were wrong?" Shikamaru gave him an odd look, patting the grass beside him. The younger Akimichi took a seat and stared bashfully at his bandaged hands. "You know it really wasn't a big deal that you stained the pillow case, right? Nothing is worth losing a friend like you, no matter how many clouds are on it." He smiled, putting the patterned case beneath his head and laid back down in the soft grass.

"I bought you a new one." Choji exclaimed, following suit.

"I see that, thanks." They watched the clouds for a few minutes before Choji spoke up again.

"If I hadn't met you I might never have been able to sit back and enjoy these moments. You know, just being with someone I care about." Shikamaru nodded in response, knowing exactly what his best friend was talking about.

"Ino just doesn't understand."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

She ran until her lungs screamed for breath, and still she kept going. Nothing was more important than finding the others. Her hair waved madly through the wind, slapping her ears mercilessly. She had been to the pubs and the ramen bars and the sushi restaurants, but hardly anyone worthwhile was in them. Finally she had stopped to take a breath and think of where people would go on a village-wide day off, and remembered the ice cream shop that many people flocked to in the hot summer months. She rounded the last corner to her destination and stopped when she was finally in front of the people she'd been sent to find.

Hardly anyone looked up at her arrival, but Hinata saw her out of the corner of her eye and waved in her direction politely. She managed a forced smile and took a breath, waiting for the all-seeing eyes to notice her distress and the state of her clothes. She was covered in scratches and blood. It took a second for Hinata to really look at her properly and she dropped her second ice cream cone in surprise.

"Sakura, what's wrong?!" She exclaimed. Jumping up suddenly, interrupting her cousin while he'd been talking. A few more heads turned in her direction and a small clamour began at her appearance. She was leaning heavily on the back of a chair and her leg was obviously badly wounded. More and more of the off-duty shinobi caught sight of her until she finally had all of their attentions, including the Nara and Akimichi pair from the hill around the back.

"Sakura, what happened?" Hinata tried again, moving closer. The pink haired girl offered a smile and took in a deep shuddering breath.

"I'm sorry for intruding on your day, but I feel you are all needed at the Hokage's office immediately." She explained, avoiding everyone's eyes. Shikamaru was the first to spot it and voiced his opinion.

"You're not telling us something." He stated and she looked up at him sadly, shooting Konohamaru and his friends a glance as well. She shook her head and shoved a few pink strands of blood-stained hair angrily out of her face.

"It's war." She said softly. "Naruto was attacked."

(End of Chapter)

Okay... after being such a bastard about it... and procrastinating like there was no tomorrow, I finally managed to finish chapter 54. The ironic thing is before I had even finished this one I had 55 started... and would type there if this chapter wasn't doing it for me. I think it was because there wasn't actually any Naruto or Sasuke in this chapter, but I felt it was needed to show what had happened to all of these people over the years, 'cause they've all changed as well... even if you haven't seen it specifically.

I think Mi-kun might hurt me when she finds out I posted this right after she signed off.

Replies:

To Iceheart19: Er... well... it was Sasuke's first time screwing Naruto... but technically no.

To Kamikakushi: My review count is really odd... it appears a lot larger than it really is. Currently, before this chapter is posted I have 911... I assume it probably says something larger like 930-something. Oh, and I apologize about Itachi... it's er... It'll be fixed up as the chapters go on. I'll keep in mind that he's a little OOC.

To Seraphina DW: No to the question about Kankuro's advisors. They're shapeless heads. Hence the reason I never named a single one of them. I'm keeping to my oath to avoid OCs as much as humanly possible. As well... you are very quick, considering I never actually hinted anything of the sort (concerning the first comment made about Gaara and Itachi). Congratulations.

To Seph Lorraine: I'm sorry if I came off sounding defensive, I really wasn't. I was just making sure I didn't get into trouble by you. Ha ha. Oh, and I felt like such an idiot for laughing at the musical reference. Made me feel like a geek. Hee hee...

To Kyuubi-kun: Me? Sadistic? Okay, maybe a little... I can't wait to see your reaction when you find out I pulled a "Shigure" on you.

To The Laer: DAMN! Ah well, I hope this chapter doesn't get you too hyper-ish and that you've viewed this on a better computer. Best of luck on topping the current record of 11kb. I doubt that there will be any more THAT thoughtful... but they were amazing to read. Besides the fact they were long, they reflected. But no matter how long or short your review may be, I know it will be perfect, because it always reviews something I did or didn't do right in the story.

To KageKitsune16: No, er... one rape is more than enough for Naruto, and even that was a traumatic experience for him (as you'll find out in the next chapter). And questions are good. It helps give me a direction to drive my story in so that I can answer them.

To AkaNoShika: Thank you for the compliments. I agree in a way with what you said about my ease with tension. I seem to feel more... able to write when there's something angsty or tension-filled going on, and any excuse to torture Naruto is great food for the muses. About the 'special-ness' of them venting... I just noticed it myself. I didn't want it to just be PWP lemons.

To Sakurako: Yes, Sasuke knows about the demon, as does the rest of the village now. Orochimaru shouted it out to everyone when in one of the chapters where he got control over the entire village.


	55. Monster

I'm still shocked that so many people seem to like my work... here's the next chapter to enjoy!

Chapter 55: Monster

Things were still awkward between them, even though it had been over two years since they had parted ways. Naruto fidgeted nervously, and Sakura watched him longingly, hoping to make eye contact long enough to force a conversation about what had happened that night. Neither of them truly wanted to bring up the past, but it was obvious something needed to be said or they would spend their whole lives with this tense air around them.

"I know you may probably hate me, but I'm very sorry for how horribly I treated you." Sakura piped up, softly, staring everywhere else but into Naruto's eyes.

"I don't hate you, Sakura-chan." He replied, just as quietly. She looked up at him and frowned.

"You should." She protested. "I used you and your feelings in the most despicable way, and I don't know how you could ever forgive me." He smiled wisely and closed his eyes as feelings inside of him began to stir up from the reminder. Tears prickled his eyes, but he was used to much worse tear-jerking moments and wasn't worried about the possibility of crying in front of his friend.

"I guess some part of me always knew you never felt that way about me, but I didn't want to admit it. You don't have to apologize for feeling the way you do. No one expects you to allow yourself to be tied down with things you don't like. If you want something, you have to go out there and get it."

"I've tried and all it's gotten me is six and a half years of trailing after Sasuke like some love-sick animal." She grinned, thankful that they were now back on speaking terms. Naruto paused, trying to toss the idea back and forth in his head. His strides faltered for a moment before continuing in their leisurely pace.

"Have you ever thought that maybe Sasuke doesn't like that behaviour?" He offered helpfully.

"Yeah, but I don't know how else to act around him."

"Try being his friend first and foremost." Naruto explained. "That way you at least have some sort of foundation to work from." They turned a corner and both nodded politely to another genin patrol group. Tsunade had stepped their patrols up to working in pairs, because of the impending danger.

"I don't know how I can possibly do that when you're the only person to get anywhere near him." He smiled inwardly at the irony of her words. "Isn't there some way you could set something up between us?" He frowned suddenly, not liking the direction their conversation had taken. For one thing, he was still a little touchy around the subject of their break up and everything that connected her to Sasuke, and he found it a little irritating that her dream boyfriend seemed to be the only thing she thought of. He was tempted to voice his rude opinions, but she looked so hopeful that he merely sighed.

"I don't think that's fair to me or Sasuke." He replied. "I don't think I'm willing to use my relationship with Sasuke to find you a date. Things like these, especially if they are supposed to be meaningful, should be done on your own. Half the fun is that split second when your whole being rests in that person's hands, there's a certain thrill you get when you lay your soul on the line like that, that you just shouldn't share with anyone else."

They continued their patrol in silence until they walked near the ice cream shop, the last stop before they had to scout out the forested areas that were known for their dangers.

Naruto let out a low chuckle at Konohamaru crouched in a corner with his other team mates, planning to pull a prank on someone, and suddenly wished he was with the younger brat. There didn't seem to be too many people there, though they both knew it would begin to get crowded in an hour. The sun was shining brightly, only hindered by the few clouds, sent there especially for Shikamaru.

Naruto grinned at that thought, and wondered what his friend was up to on his day off. They didn't have time to stop and chat with anyone as they turned around and headed away from the wonderful frozen treats towards the more feared part of the village. It was widely known that even some chuunin were afraid to go into the forests, for fear of some of the stories that were whispered to them as children. They were nothing but fairy tales, told to keep children from misbehaving, but some things were just engrained so deeply within them that even common sense couldn't cure them.

At first, everything was going as planned, and they had settled into friendly banter, talking about normal everyday things that were going on in their lives, almost as though nothing between them had ever been stained. Naruto was skilfully avoiding the topic of Sasuke entirely and Sakura was listening closely to her friend recount some of the things he had been through when she wasn't around.

Then came the ambush.

Neither of them expected it or were ready for it. It was so sudden that, for a moment, Sakura couldn't breath for fear that the blow they were delivered had killed her friend instantly. No one would know how relieved she was when she saw him stagger drowsily to his feet, but there was nothing she could do to help him as she was tied up with protecting herself from the series of kunai that were sent hurtling towards her. Many of them were skilfully knocked aside, but a few met their mark, impaling her shoulder and legs.

She stumbled slightly, and jumped at the shinobi who had attacked her when she noticed something odd. No one was paying her much attention. They were mostly focused on attacking her companion.

She took a few steps towards the handful of enemy ninjas and made her way right into the middle of the group without them noticing until it was too late. If they wanted to fight solely Naruto, they would have to go through her.

She took a protective stance above her fallen comrade, allowing him the time to get back to his feet and catch his bearings. It didn't look like his head took the impact of hitting the tree too favourably. She didn't have to wait too long for Naruto to be ready, and within seconds, an all out battle was raging, five against two. Then it was seven against two. And then there were eight.

Sakura turned to her partner and saw that he was fairing no better than she was, and had five out of the eight focused on attacking him. She frowned in worry, but she had too much else to worry about to even consider going to help him. She jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding a shinobi's right hand which had reached out to slap her, palms clothed in shuko hand claws. She winced and tried to keep her focus on her fight and let Naruto worry about himself. She didn't want to stop and think about the fact that their raid was starting to become an ambush, focused on hurting Naruto.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto called out, pain seeping into his voice. She had just knocked out her last ninja, and turned to her friend. He was still concentrating on hand-to-hand combat with the three that remained.

"Naruto!" She cried out as the razor-sharp edge of one of the masked ninja's tessen met with the soft flesh of Naruto's wrist as he brought his hand up to protect his head. He had lost the weapon that had been in that hand previously and blood was now pouring out of the fresh wound, trickling down his arm, as he tried to hold onto the deadly fan and the wrist holding it for as long as he could, while a few of his remaining clones protected him from the other two. He turned to her and she saw a long knife wound ripped across his face, forcing him to keep his wounded eye closed. She suppressed a horrified shudder.

"Sakura, go back to the village." He whispered, making it obvious that the various other wounds on his neck were affecting him more than he would let on. She shook her head profusely, but he continued talking, leaving her no room for argument, though she would try. "Get everyone to meet me at the Hokage's office, now."

"I can't just leave you, you'll be killed!" She screamed, moving forward to help with the other two that were starting to get closer. He snarled at her and she faltered in her steps.

"This is a war." He growled. "The whole is more important than the individual. You'll be safe going back; they only want me." He turned his face from her and with a swift movement, her eyes couldn't follow, he snapped the shinobi's wrist painfully and the tessen dropped from his grip. Another two strikes later, the man was passed out on the ground, courtesy of a few training sessions with Neji. By then, however, Sakura was long gone, and couldn't see the brutal way Naruto was using to defend himself. Even though she knew that Naruto was merged with the fox demon, it never occurred to her that he was close to losing control of himself, or that he was now running on nothing but adrenaline and fear.

He watched out of the corner of his remaining good eye as she retreated quickly before turning his attention on the last two. They were heavily considering attacking him, but the sight of all of their fallen comrades convinced them otherwise and they retreated into the darkness of the forest foliage. He sighed in relief and sank to the moss covered floor, fingers ghosting over every wound, some of which were already starting to heal.

He wasn't alone for long before he was visited by one other masked ninja. He curled his lip in disgust at the man, but fatigue was starting to settle into his limbs, and it would take a lot for him to find the energy to fight again.

"So you survived that night..." The ninja trailed off thoughtfully. Naruto tried to keep his head up to look at the ninja, not really knowing what he was talking about. "I never would have thought some genin as stupid as you looked would have survived a few minutes, hanging in the meat packaging shop like you were." Suddenly Naruto was reminded of the night the meat vendor died on his patrol and the horrifying agony he felt when he had learned that it wasn't just the one death on his shoulders that night, but the man's entire family.

"You're one of the shinobi who killed that man." Naruto stated angrily, the adrenaline beginning to flow back into him. "You murdered his whole family. They were all innocent people." The shinobi shifted his weight from one foot to the other and chuckled.

"Everyone's innocent when it suits them. I was just doing a job." He exclaimed, but every fibre in Naruto's being told him otherwise.

He struggled to his feet once more and snarled viciously at the man in warning, but his opponent was being cocky and ignored the danger signs.

"Then killing you will just be me doing my job." He growled, jumping forward in a lunge, tackling the masked shinobi to the ground and, with a well-aimed fist, slammed an overcharged ball of chakra through the man's face.

There was a moment of deafening silence as the entire forest was hushed. The wind ceased it's howling, the birds stilled their chirping and even the distant sounds of the village seemed to become silent. The now-lifeless body collapsed to the ground with an echoing thump. Naruto remained hunched over the dead man, hand still poised in the shape of the sphere of chakra he'd just used. There was blood everywhere, covering his clothes and face, it had even splattered across the forest floor and created patterns of dark dots along the bark of the nearby trees. It was nearly a minute before Naruto could gather his thoughts enough to realise what he'd just done.

It had been a moment of blood red crossing his vision as the rage pounded in his ears, and now he was left to deal with the after effects.

"Oh shit." He whispered, stumbling backwards into a blood-splattered tree trunk and slammed his head on a low hanging branch, but it never registered. He had just killed a man. "What did I just do?" He whispered, afraid of his own voice, but there was another part of him that reminded him that it was a war, and every war had its casualties. That and the man deserved to die for the things he did.

"What kind of monster have I become?"

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"You're not starting with the pacing thing again, are you?" Neji frowned at Sasuke, who was currently attempting to burn a line through the rug in the Hokage's office. The genin shot Neji a glare, but refused to waste his energy with a retort of any kind, physical or verbal.

He had already been in a meeting when the number of shinobi burst into the room, demanding to know where Naruto was. Sakura was the worst though, covered from head to toe in blood and looking panic-stricken that the blonde was nowhere to be seen, and neither Sasuke nor the Hokage had seen anything of him all day. When they were finally let in on what had happened, Sasuke was near hysteria, though he contained it well, only his constant pacing let anyone know how unnerved he really was.

"How many ninjas was he left with when you left?" Tsunade asked quietly.

"Two." Sakura replied, staring at her hands. "I wanted to stay, but he said the whole is more important than the individual and that you all needed to know the war has started. He practically forced me to go." They all knew it was a half-lie, but no one called her on it.

"How did he look?" Shikamaru spoke up from his comfy armchair. "Was he still doing well on his own, or was he starting to lose ground?"

"He..." Sakura trailed off, remembering the gashes that littered the visible skin. "He was doing okay, but he didn't look too pretty."

"He took some hits?" She nodded, hesitant at telling them just what she saw.

"How bad were the injuries?" Shikamaru asked slowly, noticing her reluctance.

"Bad." She replied. Sasuke turned to her and grabbed at her clothing, pulling her from her seat so that she was eye level with him.

"Stop giving us shit for answers!" He growled, tightening his hold on the fabric as it bunched at her throat. She let out a startled gasp and began talking as fast as she could.

"He's taken some hits to the throat and had some trouble speaking to me." She closed her eyes and continued to give them a full assessment of his injuries. "And he had a terrible kunai gash right down his face." She dragged a finger across her face and down her own cheek to give the shinobi the basic idea of how bad things were. "It's deep and he can't see out of that eye any longer. Last I saw, it was sealed shut with blood." Sasuke stumbled backwards, dropping the girl, but Jiraiya was behind him and caught him by the shoulders.

"I doubt that injury will be permanent." He exclaimed quietly, for Sasuke's benefit more than anyone else's. He might have said more if the door hadn't opened, revealing a broken young man.

"Naruto!" Sakura exclaimed and ran over to the blond, who was also covered from head to toe in blood. "You idiot! I was so worried about you!" She exclaimed. He looked at her with a far away expression and smiled faintly.

"I'm sorry for making you worry." He whispered softly, his eyes scanning the room for the one person he needed to see there. He found Sasuke frozen in the middle of the room, stuck between his reputation for not caring, and the need to hold his rival until every last wound healed. They stayed locked in each other's gaze until Naruto felt the strength leave his legs and he collapsed forwards into Sakura's arms.

Everyone seemed to jump to life at his fall and Sasuke ran towards him to help Sakura drag him into a nearby chair. He was crowded suddenly, and bombarded with hundreds of questions at once until a sharp glare from his best friend silenced them all.

"Are you okay?" Sasuke asked. Naruto looked up at Sasuke and had trouble focusing on his fine features, even though the young man's face was only a few inches from his own. He brought a hand up and gingerly touched the fleshy gash that ran down his face, just barely missing his eye, but it left him without sight until it fully healed. He nodded slowly.

"Do you know who it was that attacked you?" Tsunade asked over Sasuke's shoulder.

"Sand and sound ninjas." He exclaimed, his voice hoarse. "And that ninja that killed the meat vendor and his family. Most were knocked unconscious and the last two ran away, the ninja who attacked me before is dead." He looked pale and Sasuke could tell how much energy it was taking the blonde not to throw up right then and there.

"Sasuke, can you take him to the Hokage sleeping rooms while I clear up some things here?" Tsunade asked, helping Naruto to his feet. With a curt nod, Sasuke slipped an arm around the young man's waist and helped him to the door. Naruto stopped a few feet from the door, tugging on Sasuke's hand to get his attention.

"Can you carry me just this once?" He asked timidly, a tired smile curling his lips. "I'll admit defeat this time." Sasuke returned the expression briefly before placing his other arm under his rival's legs and scooping him into his arms. Neither cared about their audience as Naruto snuggled into the fabric of Sasuke's warm blue shirt, and Sasuke nuzzled the matted blonde locks. They walked out of the room without a second look backwards.

Sasuke walked slowly to the room, not letting the tension of a looming war quicken his strides, and for a while they stayed in a comfortable silence. It wasn't until Naruto started fidgeting in Sasuke's arms that the young man dropped the blonde's feet to the floor and began a conversation.

"Are you sure you're okay, Naruto?" He asked softly, wondering if the teen's nervous fidgeting had anything to do with his wounds, but Naruto meekly nodded his head. Sasuke was about to continue walking, shouldering most of Naruto's weight when his friend dropped his gaze to the floor and shook his head.

"No." He mumbled.

"Pardon?"

"I said, 'No', I'm not okay."

"What happened when they attacked you?" Sasuke moved so that Naruto was leaning with his back to the wall, and placed his hands on the wall beside the young man's head in an effort to block out the rest of the world.

"It wasn't the ambush... I killed a man." Naruto looked as though he was starting to break, and that in itself was scaring Sasuke. He always knew that Naruto was the only one able to keep up his outward façade, and if the man lost it now, there would be no hope for the rest of the village falling apart as well.

"Naruto, we're in a war, casualties happen all the time." He explained. "It's a part of being a shinobi."

"No, Sasuke, you don't understand. I killed a man, and liked it."

"What?" Sasuke stared at Naruto, dumbfounded.

"You remember what happened when that shopkeeper and his family were killed?" The dark-haired genin nodded slowly. He remembered vaguely the incident when Naruto had nearly been killed trying to defend a meat vendor who had been attacked viciously at his own home, but he didn't see why that incident would be relevant now. "One of the ninja who attacked us came back after the ambush. I...I got so angry...I... I don't remember even thinking anything other than the fact that I had been hurt and I had a chance to get my revenge. I don't think I meant to kill him, I hope I didn't, but... all I saw was red... I wanted to hurt him like he hurt me, like he hurt that man's family... Why do people keep dying because of me?" He asked softly. Sasuke took a deep shuddering breath and tried to figure out an answer to his rival's question, but all he came up with were more questions.

"These things happen." He whispered, suddenly giving in to the urge to use the presence of his body heat to alleviate the stress on Naruto's mind. He leaned closer to the wall and rested his forehead on the pale surface, just over the young man's shoulder, and pressed himself comfortingly into Naruto's bloody orange outfit. "Sometimes, Neji has the right idea believing in fate. You're not a god, Naruto. You can't expect to save everyone."

"I can try." Naruto mumbled into the dark shirt and brought his hands up under Sasuke's arms to hug his rival back. Neither of them cared enough about the idea of being seen to ignore the simple fact that each other's mere presence was more calming than anything else in the world.

When Sasuke was sure that Naruto was okay, they continued to walk down the hall, the blonde only leaning slightly on Sasuke for balance, as his wounds had been healed a lot more since he first stumbled into Tsunade's office. They both stopped in front of the large white doors, neither knowing exactly why they had hesitated, when a tremor shot up Naruto's spine and he stepped backwards.

"I don't want to go in there... I don't understand..." Naruto exclaimed, confusion written all over his features.

"What?" Sasuke asked, stepping back as well. He looked at the doors before it dawned on him. "Oh, you were... Orochimaru...in there..." He whispered in understanding. Orochimaru had raped Naruto beyond those doors. "You don't have to go inside if you don't want to." Naruto nodded and collapsed against the wall across the hall from the room. Sasuke followed suit and sat down a lot more gracefully beside him.

"I'm sorry." Sasuke turned to Naruto, studying the tanned face to try and understand the blank look that had taken over.

"Why?"

"I'm weak. How could you want someone who can't even walk into a god damned room as a sparring partner to help you get stronger to defeat your brother? I'm pathetic..." Sasuke shook his head and showed the blond one of his self-assured smirks.

"What's with the self-pity, dobe? Since when did you need this?" He shook his head and looked towards the doors. "Horrible things have happened in your life, its okay to allow them to have some sort of impact on your life, but you can't allow them to take over. I learned that from you. Some of your most traumatising moments happened behind those doors. Of course you're going to feel the waves of those moments later on, just don't let them consume you." Naruto nodded, and smiled bravely. Sasuke could tell it was part of the mask Naruto was trying to patch back together, but it was a sign that he was making the effort at least.

"I know you might not offer otherwise, but..." Sasuke trailed off, unsure of the proper way to go about his request. "Could I hear the whole story of what happened that night? If you're willing, of course. I was just thinking... I can support you when you need it, and even when you don't. If not, then I won't ever ask aga-"

"No." Naruto shook his head. "Maybe it'll be the last stage in me moving on. I'm so close to freeing myself from that night, I can almost taste it." He turned to Sasuke and smiled proudly. It looked like he had effectively replaced his old mask. "It started out with him challenging me... he said........"

(End of Chapter)

I needed to end it here because as it is it's just over 4000 words (according to Word), and with the added stuff it would have been well over 7000... at least... and I wasn't even half way done... and no this isn't a cliffhanger... the beginning of the next chapter is a flashback of the actual rape scene... solely cause Mi-kun, my editor friend, has been bugging me to know EXACTLY what went on behind those doors... so I wrote it down.

To Teki Star: I'm not entirely sure, but sources say yes to the Anime North Halloween Dance... If I go I'll be going as Edward Elric from Fullmetal Alchemist... my hair is no longer right for Ino... plus it'll be damn freezing at that time of year. You going?

To the Laer: Yeah, I suppose it is just you repeating it, but it's like combing through the story. It shows me what about the details you liked and didn't like. Everyone else just gives me general reviews... You reflect on the story... and it helps me fine-tune my own style of writing. According to my calendar it's August 15th, Zabuza's birthday. I'm keeping a record so I know when everything is happening during what season... and I'm trying to keep it relative to the main characters' birthdays. As well, that chapter wasn't too hard to write, all I did was focus on the side stories I wanted to keep going, the main one being Neji's dislike of Sasuke, and I did keep mentioning the main two throughout the whole story... so no one missed out terribly. I laughed with your comments about Neji's views about Sasuke. He does seem a bit judgemental, but it's also a lot to do with how he's seen Sasuke act around Naruto. Although it's not mentioned yet... he also heard about what happened to that kid Sasuke beat up for calling Naruto 'dobe'. Wow... that was long...

To Mia: Currently Kankuro is the Kazekage, but there was a chapter when Naruto and Sasuke did reconnaissance in Sand and Sasuke overheard Gaara giving out orders and pretending to be the leader. In the end, Leaf got false information, so they really aren't sure of who's really in charge of Sunagakure.

To AkaNoShika: 55 chapters... hell, I'm amazed at my own attention to this fic. I could have sworn on my life that I would never be able to stay with a story this long. Even 20 chapters was far out. I once told my friends that I was planning this story and as far as I had planned was approx 30 or so chapters... they laughed their asses off at me... and for good reason. You know, it took me a minute to figure out who KM was... yes, I am that dense.

Also, my next deadline for chapter 56 is supposedly Friday... I think... so expect it around Saturday night... heh heh, just kidding Mi-kun.


	56. Enemies

Yeah, I know I'm late, but at least it's here.

Chapter Title: 56: Enemies

"I know you might not offer otherwise, but..." Sasuke trailed off, unsure of the proper way to go about his request. "Could I hear the whole story of what happened that night? If you're willing, of course. I was just thinking... I can support you when you need it, and even when you don't. If not, then I won't ever ask aga-"

"No." Naruto shook his head. "Maybe it'll be the last stage in me moving on. I'm so close to freeing myself from that night, I can almost taste it." He turned to Sasuke and smiled proudly. It looked like he had effectively replaced his old mask. "It started out with him challenging me... he said........"

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"...but you are nothing but an ant compared to Sasuke-san." Naruto could feel his face heat up in embarrassment at the words and he clamped his teeth down, angrily, in an effort to bite the man.

"I can do anything Sasuke can." He snapped back, knowing that was the wrong thing to say, but finding he needed to say it and defend himself. "I can handle anything Sasuke can and more." The glint in the snake's eyes and the way his lips curled up into that serpentine smirk sent a shiver down his spine and told him he'd just about signed his death warrant.

"Is that true? Well, then, we're just going to have to see if that's so. Do you think you can handle my inquisition?" Orochimaru asked, looking over his shoulder wordlessly telling his guards to leave the room, and when they were finally alone in the room, Naruto saw the glint in Orochimaru's eyes heat up to a form of hunger he'd never seen before. "Or will you break under pressure and beg for mercy. I'm not quite sure, but I like the idea of both possibilities." He grinned maliciously and before Naruto could blink there was another face hovering above his own, one that didn't belong to that of the Sennin. It was young and handsome, if not slightly beautiful, and for a moment Naruto was lost.

"Sasuke..." He whispered, tearing his eyes away from the perfect imitation. If he didn't, he might have been able to convince himself that it really was his friend because everything was perfect, and it was more than obvious that the man had an obsession with the younger boy. Even the sound of his breathing was that of the Uchiha.

"What's wrong, Naruto-kun?" Orochimaru asked, his voice mimicking the perfect blend of cold indifference with a hint of compassion. Naruto almost couldn't handle it, but he'd made himself a promise and he wasn't about to let Orochimaru win that easily. He could remember that it wasn't Sasuke if he tried hard enough. "You're not afraid of me, are you, dobe?" At the nickname, and the obvious sound of arrogance in the voice, the blonde nearly broke down, and he knew that had he been on his feet, his knees would have buckled.

"Not going to work, bastard." He gritted out, chanting 'Orochimaru' over and over in his head in an effort to keep himself from falling for the illusion. "So you can imitate Sasuke, how is that supposed to make me break? You're an idiot if you think I'm going to give up Sasuke's location to some cheap copy." He spat ferociously into Orochimaru's eye, to prove his point, even though somewhere in the back of his mind a little voice was telling him to stop pissing the older man off.

"You want to be broken?" Sasuke's voice asked darkly. "I'm sure that can be arranged."

He smirked and brought a hand roughly to the crotch of Naruto's pants, startling a choked gasp from the blond. The teen struggled away from the teasing hand, but with his arms chained above his head, and Sasuke's body weight pinning his legs in place, all his squirming got him was a much closer encounter with the hand. He couldn't stop the moan that ripped from his throat, and his eyes slid shut.

"Sasuke..." He whispered, his consciousness fighting to keep up the mantra of 'Orochimaru', but dying in the swirling sensations the illusion was delivering to Naruto's growing arousal. "Stop... don't... I... god, help me..." Above him, Orochimaru let out a very un-Sasuke-like hiss of pleasure.

"I can give you release if you just tell me where my body is..." He whispered, licking the shell of Naruto's ear.

"He's not your body, asshole." Naruto grunted out, thankful for the distraction from Orochimaru's hand. "He doesn't belong to anyone, so you're just going to have to get yourself another one." Orochimaru chuckled.

"I'm sure you'd love me to belong to you, Naruto-kun." He exclaimed.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Naruto spat in return, scrunching up his face in disgust.

"You said I don't belong to anyone... but surely you'd like that to change." He smirked and continued moving his hand, this time slipping it beneath the orange fabric of his pants. "You can't honestly tell me that you've never had a wet dream about seeing my naked body beneath you, sweating, panting, moaning your name in wanton lust..." As the words slithered into Naruto's mind, he noticed the smirk on Sasuke's face grew wider still.

"No, I...Sasuke... it's lies..." He squeezed his eyes shut tightly and focused on repeating the man's name. "I don't... Sasuke's not like that..."

"But I'm sure you'd love me to be, right? You haven't denied dreaming about me that way." Orochimaru leaned in and licked the corner of Naruto's lips.

"I'm not going to give in that easily, Orochimaru." He growled fiercely. "If Sasuke can handle it, so can I. I will prove that I'm just as strong a shinobi as he is."

"It's got nothing to do with being a perfect shinobi." Orochimaru sneered down on Naruto. "You could be completely matched with Sasuke in ninja abilities, but do you think you're as strong a boy as Sasuke?"

"Stronger." Naruto retorted.

"Very well then, Naruto-kun." For a moment, Naruto couldn't understand what the pain was. He was blinded by the infinite blackness that covered his vision for a few moments, and the white-hot searing pain the shot up his spine and across his body before he could figure out what happened. He opened his eyes and screamed himself hoarse, but still the pain lingered. That's when he noticed that Orochimaru was now pounding into his body, like he was nothing more than a rag doll, and the hand on his arousal was confusing him with its mixture of pleasure and pain. Everything felt like it was on fire, and all his nerve endings were tingling.

"Stop!" He cried out, almost reduced to begging. "Sasuke, please..."

"Will you tell me where to find my body?" Orochimaru crowed above him, not bothering to pause in the act to let Naruto catch his bearings.

"Never." Naruto whispered softly.

"As you wish."

Only a mere moment later, Naruto climaxed in the worst way possible. He rode out the waves of ecstasy, rocking into the rhythm Orochimaru had set.

"Un, Sasuke..." Naruto moaned as Orochimaru pulled out finally, both exhausted and spent.

"There's where you made your mistake, Naruto-kun." Sasuke's voice exclaimed, proudly. "Never give up any weaknesses to the enemy, especially one such as this. Who would have guessed you had this sort of affection for my body."

"He's not your body, bastard." Naruto replied, though he was clearly taxed beyond his limits.

"It's only a matter of time before you give him up, and then he'll become my body. You're not strong enough to last more than a day in my possession." He moved himself backwards from the blonde and straightened out his robes before calling his guards back into the room. They all seemed mildly surprised that Orochimaru was still frustrated, but they kept their faces devoid of emotion, and Naruto only noticed it as a telltale eyebrow was raised as each guard returned to the room. It gave him hope that he could make it until someone rescued him.

"I would kill myself before I ever gave up my Sasuke to you."

"Your Sasuke? I'm afraid you've got your possessions mixed up, or did you forget that adorable little speech that he doesn't belong to anyone."

"He may not belong to anyone, but his rivalry belongs to me and, for the rest of my life, I will fight to keep that."

"Oh, how poetic you sound, Naruto-kun." Orochimaru cackled and grabbed the ribbed collar of his orange and blue jacket, pulling his body up so that he was staring Orochimaru in the eyes, wrists straining painfully against the cold metal chains that kept him attached to the wall. He winced, but didn't give Orochimaru the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain. They glared at each other for a moment before a look passed over Orochimaru's face, much like the realization of an epiphany, and Naruto's heart sunk even lower. Even so, he refused to break eye contact with the snake of a man.

"What a fool you are." Orochimaru laughed softly before his eyes flashed open to their fullest. Naruto's head snapped back, as though he'd been punched in the face and found he couldn't move at all. His arms were not his own, his eyes were not his own and even his breath was not his own. It gave him a greater respect for Sakura when she'd been possessed by Ino during the chuunin preliminary exams when they were younger.

This reminder startled him and he tried doing what Sakura had done; fight back, but Orochimaru was decades more skilled than the pink-haired girl was, and his control was absolute.

'Fun, isn't it?' he heard Orochimaru's voice in his head. 'That I can take over your entire being with nothing but a glance. If I want to do this...' he reached Naruto's hand to the back of his neck and scratched a slight itch Naruto hadn't even noticed. 'You can't do anything to stop me.' There was a cackle of laughter that echoed through his head and he tried fighting again, only to be shot down before he could even think of what to do. 'And if I wanted to do this...' Orochimaru continued, trailing the same hand sensually down the orange jacket, catching the zipper nimbly in his fingers and pulling it down slowly. If Naruto had been in any sort of control of both the situation and his body, he would have froze up, but the hand kept on its path towards his bare thighs. He whimpered softly and begged Orochimaru to stop, but he still wasn't willing to give up Sasuke's position, and they both knew that would be the only reason for the man to show any kind of mercy, if Orochimaru was a merciful kind of guy.

A few minutes of 'self-imposed' torture later, Orochimaru returned to his original body, smirking triumphantly. He had effectively given the blonde nightmares for the next little while, and Naruto doubted he would even be able to touch himself that way for a long time without thinking of Orochimaru doing the same actions.

"Do you really think our fun is over?" He laughed, shooting his guards an amused look. Naruto peeked over Orochimaru's shoulder and noticed that they all seemed to enjoy Naruto's little show, if the bulges in their pants were any indication. He shuddered, thoroughly disgusted, but found that Orochimaru was far from being done with his new toy, and he still had hours of fun left to endure.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"And when you came in that night... I really thought you were him, coming back for more. He did it so many times I lost count. He had a certain liking for making me feel worthless, but it didn't stop him from beating me. I never told anyone this, but... I didn't break down until I was in the safety of your arms." Sasuke gave him a sad smile and nodded. "And if you're ever planning on betraying the village you better not use that against me, or I'd have to kill you." He smiled nervously. Sasuke had been silent the entire time, but Naruto could see the questions in his eyes and paused long enough to let the young man voice a few of them.

"How did you ever manage to get over it enough to take me up on my offer?" He asked, referring to the night they first started screwing around.

"You were you." Naruto said simply. "There was something in the way you treated me that marked you as different from that man, and it made me feel safer." Sasuke nodded, his curiosity satisfied for the moment, and Naruto was almost relieved that he hadn't felt the need to question Naruto's other motives. It might have dampened the euphoria that had taken over his entire being when he finally told someone about his past. As cheesy as it sounded it was as though a great weight had been lifted from his shoulders and he could finally breathe again.

"Did I not tell you two to wait in my room?" A voice called from down the hall. They both turned to see Tsunade walking towards them.

"We thought it would be polite not to enter your room without you present." Sasuke lied easily, shoving off the wall to stand protectively over Naruto, shielding him from the older woman's sight.

"You don't have to lie to her, Sasuke." Naruto exclaimed, peering around his legs. "She deserves to know the truth." Sasuke turned back, locking eyes with Naruto before nodding in agreement.

"Orochimaru held Naruto captive in that room." He explained, not really comfortable telling her exactly what went on behind the white doors. "He did a lot of horrible things in that room, and neither of us wanted to revisit that place."

"He raped you in there?" She asked, sidestepping Sasuke almost as though he wasn't even there. She crouched down in front of the blond teen, though both of them looked at her as though she had grown two-heads. She sounded so certain of what Orochimaru had done to Naruto even though Sasuke had only hinted vaguely at it.

"What?" They both voiced at the same time.

"I figured Orochimaru would have done something like that to you, but I had no idea it had happened in there." She shook her head as if apologizing. "I had assumed it was somewhere in this building, though." She turned to Sasuke, flashing him a brief smile. "Has Naruto-kun told you all of what happened, maybe some of the reasoning behind Orochimaru's actions?"

"Yes." He nodded. "I've heard rumours saying him and Jiraiya were in some sort of relationship, but I don't think that can be used as an excuse for what he did to Naruto."

"Of course not. Nothing in the world can excuse what he did, but there are reasons behind his actions, even if they're not justifiable ones." She sat down beside Naruto to explain a little bit of their history to Sasuke, motioning for the dark-haired genin to sit, but her invitation was flatly ignored. She ignored this and continued. "Jiraiya and him became lovers very early on. I've already mentioned this to Naruto, but I feel it's important you hear this as well. It was something really stupid... I think Jiraiya was upset over something Orochimaru had bested in him... or maybe it was a girl... I never really got the details out of him... but they were just butting heads as usual and out of the blue they..." She paused, a deep blush colouring her features.

"Are you embarrassed by what they did?" Naruto snickered. She shot him an annoyed look but continued.

"Anyways, I know that Orochimaru was probably still lusting after Jiraiya... and well, Naruto is remarkably like Jiraiya was. "She turned to Sasuke, studying his features, noting the sharp beauty of his facial features as well as the long silky hair worn loose around his shoulders. "And Sasuke is the same with who Orochimaru was when he was younger, before he betrayed the village."

"I told you Sasuke's nothing like that bastard." Naruto spat out in the older genin's defence.

"Yes, but you were also stuck in the illusion of a girl, and I already explained it to you. Sasuke is very power-oriented in his goals. I'm assuming you still aim to kill your brother and restore your clan." She looked up at him. He nodded, but frowned at the last part. If she noticed, she said nothing. "He was the same way. He was the class genius, the top in everything he did, and Jiraiya couldn't even compare until we were out of the classroom... and like Sasuke, Orochimaru turned to the easier way out to discover power."

"I returned." Sasuke stated dully.

"That's true also. Jiraiya failed to save Orochimaru from the darkness. There's also the subtle difference of them screwing like bunnies before they had even turned 18." She snickered unladylike behind her hand. Both young men looked at each other, wide eyed, thinking the same thing. Sasuke coughed suddenly, choking on his breath and Naruto blushed bright red. "Jiraiya really loved Orochimaru though, and I have to believe that somewhere, Orochimaru felt the same." She sighed and stood up, pushing herself away from the wall. It was hard for her to go through life being only one of two defenders of her old friend.

"So why did you want him here?" Sasuke asked, bending down to help Naruto to his feet as well. His wounds were healing slower than normal, but that was to be expected from someone who nearly died.

"I wanted him to stay here for a while, till his wounds are healed. While you two were waiting for me to come and get you there were a few other reports of attacks and you are both needed. Sasuke, I'm assigning you to the front lines, to watch the gate and stop the enemy from getting through, and I want Naruto to stay here and guard the tower. Sand's main goal is to overthrow my power and this tower is the centre of it." She nodded curtly to them before turning around and leaving the way she had come, not wasting anymore time. When she had disappeared from sight, Naruto muttered darkly under his breath and slumped back down to the floor.

"What was that?"

"I said, 'I don't need a damn babysitter'." He growled again. Sasuke laughed under his breath and rolled his eyes at the statement.

"Sure you don't." He replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Naruto turned to him and shot him the fiercest glare he could muster.

"Bastard." He muttered.

They stayed together for another fifteen minutes, before they both had to admit that Naruto had healed enough to fight. They moved to part ways, but Sasuke quickly turned back and grabbed Naruto's arm.

"Wait." Naruto paused, turning back to his friend curiously. "Have you noticed that we seem to keep getting spit up? We never work together on missions or patrols."

"I noticed it a while back, but there's nothing we can do about that now." The blond replied, shaking his head bemusedly. "I'll see you after this, okay?" They both nodded at the silent agreement to make sure they survived to the next meeting.

"When we next meet you're also going to tell me why you lied about that chuunin vest." Sasuke added. "I know it's not Iruka's, but I want to hear the truth from your lips before I make any judgements." He left the hall, not giving Naruto the chance to explain himself, and leaving his rival in shock.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke headed to the main gates where a number of ninjas were fighting to get into the village. There were about a dozen of Konohagakure's shinobi of all levels working to stave off the flow of enemies, but it seemed to bee too much for the men to handle. Sasuke jumped into the fight by pulling a ninja off the back of a fellow leaf genin. The ninja he had dislodged turned his attacks on the Uchiha and soon he was submerged in the hand-to-hand combat that was taking over the attention of all the guards.

Suddenly, Sasuke spotted something that made him falter in mid kick, allowing one of his enemies the chance to trip him to the floor. He recovered quickly, without too much damage and took a second to look around, but it had disappeared, making him believe it was just a figment of his imagination. He frowned and shook his head, focusing his Chidori attack on hitting the nearest group of Sand shinobi. There was no way he could have seen the Mangekyou Sharingan.

He was preparing to breathe a fireball at another couple of Sand enemies when he saw another flash of the brother Sharingan. He choked on the fiery breath and looked around, but there was no sign of his brother anywhere. He growled in frustration, torn between staying at his post and ignoring direct orders to chase after his older sibling.

Cursing under his breath, he remained at his post, but noticed something odd. The only fallen shinobi belonged to the leaf's numbers. Not a single Sunagakure ninja lay at their feet, and they just seemed to keep coming at the remaining handful. It seemed that none of the Sand had fallen, but he knew for a fact that his Chidori had wiped through at least three shinobi. He charged at the nearest enemy, intent on seeing what was happening, but by the time he had tackled the man to the ground, four other ninjas had jumped on him and he lost track of the one he'd hit.

When the four ninja holding him down exploded in his face, he realised what they all were. It was a well-known fact that Itachi had a penchant for the exploding clones, and Sasuke understood this all too late. He looked around and noticed that none of the attacking men had the right quality of normal humans.

"Stop hiding from me, jerk!" He yelled, running to check on the injured. Only one of the men at the gates seemed to be seriously injured, his leg broken in three different places. He looked up at the sound of familiar laughter and noticed the stronger shinobi were starting to close the gates again, not an enemy in sight.

"Look, we need to start splitting up." One of the older jounin exclaimed, taking charge of the chaos. "Some real shinobi might have snuck in during the attack, and I don't want them to be able to get too far into the village." They started sending people off in various directions.

"I'll go check out the tower." Sasuke exclaimed. "I might know one of the men who snuck through, and they might be heading over there to try and capture it." The jounin nodded in agreement and got a chuunin to follow him in that general direction as well.

He only hoped he was right in guessing Itachi was after Naruto.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Because many of the enemies had been taken care of before they got too far into the centre of Konohagakure, Naruto had very little action on his end of the battlefield, and he was beginning to get a little bored. There were even rumours starting to spread that the enemy was retreating slightly, but still Naruto kept doing his best to protect the tower, not allowing anyone come further than they already had.

Suddenly he found himself spitting out grass, having been knocked over in a surprise attack by a faceless sand nin. He rolled to the side, wiping his mouth on his sleeve and getting up into a protective stance. He growled menacingly, trying to see if it would scare this one off, like it had some of the other weaker shinobi, but this one merely laughed at his scare tactics. They fought for a few minutes, often gaining help from another team mate on either side, but kept their focus on each other.

Until he disappeared.

Naruto looked around, frantically, wondering where the unidentifiable nin went, when he spotted a lump under the ground beginning to move away from their battle. For a moment, he was suspicious of the lump, but he wasn't about to let the sand nin get away without a fight. He also realised that with such a technique, entrance into the tower would be easier than anyone could have imagined. He took off running, yelling to the jounin in charge what his intentions were, but ignored the command to return and stay at his post.

"If you leave now, I'll inform the Hokage, you brat!!" He laughed out his response and continued to follow the moving sand into the village, heading towards the forests. Every so often he would lose sight of the moving ground, but then the lump would return to his field of vision, almost as though luring him away from his post. He continued on into the dense foliage until he had completely lost the fleeing nin.

Looking around, Naruto wondered where he was. He knew the sand nin was somewhere nearby, and half-expected to see the bulge of ground, but there was nothing until he heard a noise in the bushes just ahead. He walked forward, almost on his tip-toes, peering around a nearby tree to find Sasuke cursing under his breath and searching through the forest in the same manner as he was.

Sasuke looked up at the sound of a crunching twig, but saw nothing as Naruto chose to keep himself hidden, watching and waiting to see what exactly Sasuke was looking for, while keeping his Sharingan still. Sasuke turned his head to the other side, satisfying his curiosity when a ninja arose from the sand. At first the man was unrecognisable, but as the sand fell away from his face, Sasuke's eyes narrowed in recognition.

"What are you doing here?" He asked. "Did you lead me here?"

"Of course not." There was a laugh following that statement. "At least, not you."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean, Gaara of the dessert?" The demon smirked at the name, but shrugged off the question. "If you're not here to help then get lost." Sasuke growled under his breath, turning to walk away, having better things to do with his time.

"Wait." Gaara exclaimed, grabbing Sasuke's arm quickly to prevent the other man from leaving. Sasuke stopped at the feeling on his skin and tensed up.

"You're from Sunagakure. We're at war. I have nothing to say to you."

"Hear me out at least, Uchiha." Gaara replied. "I'm not the same bloodthirsty demon you met as a child. I've seen the way you looked at me during the chuunin exam. I know that you lust for power." Sasuke turned around and glared at him vehemently.

"It was never much of a secret. Everyone knows that my brother's death is my life's goal. That doesn't mean I have any reason to listen to you." Gaara stepped closer, not allowing Sasuke's frosty attitude sway him.

"We're alike, you know." He explained. "Power is something we both lust for, in and out of the bedroom. You are a kind of power I want to attempt to tame, or at least... be tamed by." He smirked, ignoring the dangerous glint in Sasuke's eyes. "I've heard about you and Uzumaki. My request is one night of what you two share."

"We share nothing."

"Don't give me that shit, Uchiha." Gaara spat, tightening his grip on Sasuke's arm. "You crave power, and I've got it. I'm more than willing to be generous this once, and share some of my own power." Sasuke laughed outright.

"You think I'm an idiot, don't you?" He spat, ripping his arm from the Sunagakure ninja's grip. "I'd have to be an idiot to sleep with the enemy. You are from the country we are at war with. I won't fuck you, even if I were dying." Regardless of Sasuke's words, Gaara stepped even closer, sharing the Uchiha's body heat. He raised another hand to place tenderly on Sasuke's shoulder, but was slapped away before it could touch the soft fabric of the genin's shirt.

"Why should Naruto get all the fun?" He asked bemusedly. "Are you in love with the boy?"

"Of course not." Sasuke replied. "But there are circumstances between us that are none of your business."

"If I'd been from the Hidden Leaf village, would I be in your bed now, too?" Sasuke laughed and pushed Gaara away from him and out of his personal space.

"You'll never know, now, will you?" He barked, suddenly becoming uneasy by the superior smirk that had lit up the demons face as they spoke.

"There's one person who knows that answer." Gaara answered, pointing in Naruto's direction. The blond stumbled backwards on upon his discovery, and the snapping of more twigs turned Sasuke's Sharingan gaze upon him. He glared at the blood red gaze and was almost surprised to feel his lip curl in disgust. He should have known Sasuke's interest in him went no further than his lust for power, and he cursed himself for not seeing it earlier. Why else would Sasuke even have anything to do with a lowlife like him otherwise? He should have taken it as a compliment, but all he felt was betrayal.

He turned back to the tower and began running, totally forgetting about the reasons he had gone into the forests in the first place. He could hear Sasuke tearing through the forests after him, but didn't slow down or heed any of the older teen's shouts to slow down and wait.

It took a few moments, and they were nearing the edges of the forest, before Sasuke finally caught up with his fleeing rival. He reached out and grabbed Naruto's arm, pulling them both to a stop. Naruto whirled around with a speed Sasuke hadn't predicted and launched a fist into Sasuke's jaw.

"Let me go." He growled, jerking back his arm violently, but Sasuke didn't heed his command.

"No way." Sasuke replied, just as passionately. "Not until we talk."

"Go fuck yourself, bastard." Naruto said, spitting in his friend's face. Sasuke wiped the saliva away with his other hand, but did not let go.

"No that's your job." He retorted. Apparently it had been the wrong thing to reply with for Naruto suddenly spun around, wrenching his wrist from Sasuke's grip and hurling himself at the other genin, feet and fists flailing, trying to hurt as many places on the Uchiha's body as he could, as fast as he could. He was beyond rage, something that clouded his mind until his movements became too erratic, giving Sasuke the upper hand and allowed the older of the two to pin the blond to the forest floor.

"When did we involve emotions with our agreement?" He yelled, making his grip on Naruto's shoulder and wrist as painful as he could.

"About the same time YOU started whoring yourself to all the guys in the village." Naruto wasn't thinking straight, and even in his right mind said things he would regret later, but he couldn't stop until he had said his piece. "I know the look Gaara was talking about. You've looked at Neji, Lee, Shikamaru... even Kakashi has earned that gaze from you."

"Not that it's any of your business, but you have always been and always will be the only one. There's no need to be jealous." He frowned seriously, studying the look in Naruto's eyes. The betrayal was still there, but it had receded slightly. He leaned down to place a gentle chaste kiss upon Naruto's slightly chapped lips. The blonde turned his head away, colouring a little.

"Who has time to be jealous when we're at war?" He asked, shoving Sasuke off of him and returning to the village. "I'm disobeying orders by being away from my post. See you later." He exclaimed and left the shade of the forest, not bothering to look back, knowing that Sasuke would still be sitting on the ground, staring blankly at his retreating back.

(End of Chapter)

Well then... I was late on my deadline (like I had expected), but Mi-kun was very understanding and gave me till this coming Friday to finish this chapter. What a wonderful sight it will me to find the chapter finished almost four days early. Hee hee... I feel another Shigure moment coming on.

To hakusgirl: KM is Kishimoto... or that's what I read it to mean.

To Kamikakushi: Happy Birthday!!! My birthday's not for a long while. But the first birthday of this fic is coming up soon.

To SpoonNinja: Yay! I'm an idol!

To AkaNoShika: It's okay, I understand what it's like not to be in the mood. I once went for four and a half months without reviewing anything... too bad you'll miss this, however, I'll keep updating regularly. Have fun with your exams, and rest assured, this story is far from over. I highly doubt it will be finished by then.

To ghostninja85: Er.. I don't entirely know what you're talking about... but neither of these chapters have a lemon in them. Though, this is as close to it that I will post on ff.n.

To the Laer: heh... Thanks for the major ego stroking. One thing I enjoy about your reviews is they show me technical things that I don't even realise I'm doing, like with the detached Sakura point of view. For the most part, I just type it as it comes to me. I agree with you about 233. I actually am using the image of Sasuke leaning over Naruto, their faces about an inch apart... and the rain... as my wallpaper. I couldn't resist. And now I'm dying to see 235. (BTW: I think I started that rumour about Kishimoto knowing about us...) I also hope that this chapter has helped develop some more... permanent emotional bonds between these two.

To Lady Lu Bu: Okay, you can have Orochimaru's dead body. Just so long as I get to keep my beloved Naruto-kun.

To Teki Star: Yay! Hopefully I get to go... have to get money first... then find a ride... then finish my costume (it's actually more or less done. All that's left is hemming the red jacket).

By the way... HAPPY BIRTHDAY NARUTO!!! I missed it... damn... one day off (yes, technically it's two, but I'm still awake so it's still yesterday to me)... I should have worked on this a day earlier to get it finished as a birthday present for my Naruto-kun.

Anyways, birthday cake for everyone!!!!


	57. Everything is Lost

Chapter Title: 57. Everything is Lost

There was blood everywhere. It soaked every surface. You couldn't take two steps without sliding on a puddle of freshly spilled blood, not that anyone was paying it much notice. They were all too caught up in the blur of war that had descended upon the village. Everywhere they turned, the shinobi of the leaf were trying to protect their lives and the lives of the villagers in it, made only worse by the confusion. Behind their hands, when they got the chance, both sides were asking the same question. Didn't we used to be allies?

"They blame us for the death of their leader." Kakashi grunted to Iruka at the question, while trying to hold his ground against two Sunagakure jounin at once.

"But Orochimaru-"

"They won't hear that explanation of events." Kakashi interrupted, using the force of his chakra to throw the two men away from him. They were both in the thickest part of the battle, but, while there were innumerable Sand ninjas, the Konohagakure chuunin and jounin were few and far between, handling three and four enemies at a time. It was widely known to the villagers and their shinobi that Tsunade-hime was making requests for allied support, but many other villages were holding back and watching before taking a definite side.

Iruka frowned, but didn't say another word, focusing on fighting off his enemies, a team of two female kunoichi. There was a lot he would have wanted to say, but a battlefield was no place to have a mild, thoughtful conversation. He growled lightly when one of the women threw powder in his eyes and frantically rubbed his face to be free of the burning specks of dust.

When he finally got his bearings again, not even a second later, one of the two had disappeared, the other smirking maliciously at him. He didn't have time to think before a handful of needles found themselves lodged a few inches into his back. He'd survived worse, but it hurt all the same. Falling to his knees, Iruka began coughing up some of the blood the needles sent into his lungs. It wasn't fatal, luckily, as the set of sticks had just barely scraped by his vital organs. He staggered to his feet and continued fighting, pulling out another kunai, even though he was starting to slow down ever so slightly.

Kakashi was having a rough time as well. He was used to relying solely on himself, or, if it ever came down to it, his team of genin, but he wasn't used to relying on other people, and was having trouble ignoring the distraction that was Iruka. They weren't on perfect speaking terms, and, for some odd reason, all his problems with the younger man were starting to poke through his consciousness, making him divide his attention between his battles and the presence he felt at his side.

He sucked in a quick breath when he felt a body slam into his knees, unexpectedly. He turned sharply, cursing under his breath when he saw the bundle of needles sticking out of the chuunin's back, around his kidneys, aimed for the jounin. If he hadn't been attacked again, he would have tended to his temporary partner, but as it was, he had no time or patience to look after the man.

"He's old enough to take care of himself." He muttered to himself, knocking the hilt of a kunai out of his attacker's hand with the back of his metal-clad hand. Secretly, though, he was proud that Iruka had done something so selfless to protect him, knowing if it hit anywhere important he wouldn't last long without treatment.

"Kakashi-san." Iruka whispered, curling into himself, holding his stomach painfully.

"Aa." The silver-haired man replied, still dividing his attention, though now it was to keep an eye out for his fallen comrade. If he showed too much compassion for the man the enemy might use it against him, so he tried to keep up his air of indifference even though he wanted nothing more than to check on his old friend.

"Thank you for looking out for me."

"When I'm done here, I'll take you to a medical specialist and get those needles taken out." Kakashi exclaimed. "Don't worry." He glanced down to see that Iruka had stopped twitching in pain and was looking up at him calmly, trusting him completely.

"I'm not. I know everything will be okay with you." He answered ambiguously, smiling. He looked weak and Kakashi took a second to bend down to check Iruka's forehead. "I don't have a fever, Kakashi." He growled lightly, crinkling his nose up in distaste, making a funny looking design out of the scar placed there. Kakashi was covered for a couple of seconds by a couple of other shinobi nearby until they too were driven off, leaving Kakashi alone to defend himself and his chuunin friend.

"We'll be back at the hospital in no time." He exclaimed hopefully to Iruka, seriously pissing off one of the chuunin who was attacking him.

"You think we're all pushovers, Cyclops?" He yelled, getting enraged. His movements became erratic until Kakashi finally took pity on the man and broke the arm he was attacking with. The other one had been rendered useless in another battle and the chuunin opted to turn and run rather than continue fighting Kakashi like the rest of his team mates were doing. They were hoping to use their numbers to their advantage, but with the Sharingan, Kakashi still proved to be the superior fighter, artfully dodging all the weapons and limbs thrown at him, while getting in quite a few punches of his own.

"You were always such a graceful fighter." Iruka remarked, only loud enough for the sound to barely make it to Kakashi's ears. "I used to watch you when you trained, even when I was younger." Kakashi growled under his breath, shooting the fallen chuunin a nasty glare.

"Stop saying things like you're dying." He snarled, impaling a kunoichi with her own weapon. Iruka nodded slightly, still curled up in a protective fetal position, arms clutching his stomach. "It's a flesh wound that will heal quickly when I get you back."

"I know why you always pushed me away." Iruka continued, almost as though he hadn't heard his friend's command. "I never thought about it until now. You were trying to protect yourself; me. I didn't care. I just wanted you. Now look where it got me, lying in a pool of my own blood." He coughed, slightly.

"Maybe next time you'll be a little more careful." Kakashi bit back, performing a series of complex hand seals to let loose one of his copied jutsus.

"Maybe." Iruka stopped talking and Kakashi almost sighed in relief at being able to concentrate more on the ninja he was trying to defeat. He had four more to go, and not even the slight scratching Iruka was making in the dirt would distract him from finishing up what he had started.

He grabbed his hand supportively and smirked to himself when the air around them danced with the eerie blue light, if he hadn't used the technique hundreds of times before he might have found himself deafened by the loud chirping that accompanied the move.

One shinobi took the hint to save his life and run as far as he could in the other direction, but both him and the angry jounin knew he wouldn't get too far before he met his fate at the hands of another angry Hidden Leaf ninja. The other three, obviously, didn't know any better as they looked as determined as ever to defeat the silver haired man.

He took a few minutes to collect all the power he could. The enemies tried to attack him with jutsus of their own, but none of them were effective in the presence of the Chidori, which was sucking the chakra out of all the nearby attacks. He looked up from his hand, Sharingan spinning faster than anyone had ever seen it, recording each jutsu as it was used against him.

Within seconds one man was dead and the other two were taking heed and running for their lives. He had moved faster than either of them could have followed, and they had gotten a mere fifty steps before they too collapsed to the ground, dead.

Kakashi let go of the chakra in his hand and walked slowly back to Iruka. He found the man still in the position he'd left him in, eyes shut, in a deep sleep.

"That wound must have sapped your energy." Kakashi muttered to himself, rolling Iruka onto his back to be able to pick up the limp form easier. He swallowed a grunt of displeasure when he saw that Iruka had a reason to be curled into himself. The needles, which had only seemed to go into Iruka's side a few inches, had, in fact, gone right through his body, and were sticking out through his stomach. Kakashi was anxious about moving Iruka around too much in case he caused severe damage, but he realised there wasn't much time left. He pulled the body into his arms and straightened to stand just as his eyes caught sight of something Iruka had obviously written in the dirt.

Scrabbled into the mud was the symbols for 'I love you', just beside where Iruka had been lying. Kakashi smiled inwardly and rubbed out the message with his foot, running as fast as he could back to the village. He still had a long time to wait before it would be safe for him to admit anything.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"What the hell was that?" a voice asked, startling Gaara out of his bemused entertainment. He turned around and shrugged disinterestedly.

"It was fun." He replied.

"I thought you admired Naruto." His sister tried again. "Why did you do that? Don't even try to tell me you didn't mean for him to get hurt." He smirked slightly and shrugged again.

"Itachi told me specifically not to touch a hair on his precious little brother's head. Never said anything about messing with his mind a bit. Just because I happen to like the fox, doesn't mean I have to like his choice in pets." Temari smirked. "Plus, I always find a loop hole in orders, especially when they're from people I don't especially trust."

"That was you loop holing Itachi-san?" She asked, finding her brother's lack of interest endearing.

"Of course." He replied. "I'm not following orders until I figure out which side he's on."

"You're a hypocrite, brother. You don't even know what side you're on." She shook her head sadly. He looked up at her and smirked mischievously, obviously knowing more than she did.

"On the contrary, I know exactly what side I'm on. It's the rest of the world that's in doubt." He snickered.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Kakashi, may I have a word with you?" Tsunade asked softly, coming out of the room she had put Iruka in. He looked up hopefully and nodded, following her to a less crowded part of the hospital wing. Everyone had some reason for wanting her expertise, but she'd agreed to take a look at Iruka as soon as he'd been brought in.

"How's he doing, Tsunade-hime?" He asked. She shot him a worried glance.

"How long were you with Iruka?" She asked, avoiding the question for the moment. He frowned, but replied nonetheless.

"The whole time, why?"

"When was the last time you spoke with Iruka?" She continued. Kakashi shrugged, trying to think back to their conversation.

"Half an hour, maybe an hour ago, why are you asking me this?" She nodded solemnly, her brows knotting together in worry. "Is he going to be okay? Or is his condition really that bad?"

"Umino-sensei didn't make it." She whispered softly. "I did some tests and fixed the time of death about an hour ago, long before he'd even been admitted into this hospital." Kakashi growled and shook the woman by her shoulders.

"This is not the time for a joke, woman!" He yelled, attracting the attention of a couple of bystanders who were surprised to see their Hokage been shaken so roughly without retaliating. "I want to see him." He demanded, standing straight and neutralizing his features. It would do him no good to panic in the middle of a war.

"Of course." The Hokage exclaimed softly and led him back into the room. He went to the teacher's side instantly, lifting the limp hand. He nearly dropped the appendage in fright when he felt how cold it had become in such a short span of time. The dark blue veins had begun to show drastically, contrasting vividly with the pale translucent skin.

"He's not dead." He whispered, shaking his head.

"Kakashi, please." Tsunade urged, placing a comforting hand on the jounin's shoulder. "Don't do this to yourself. The first needles did severe damage to his internal organs, and started some massive internal bleeding. That last hit he sustained ended his life. The second set of needles delivered the fatal wounds, puncturing his liver, among other things. He died a few moments after the hit."

Kakashi stared at her blankly, thumb rubbing over the blue-tinted flesh subconsciously as they both waited for the information to settle in. He looked down to see his hands clasped around the dead chuunin's and flinched in disgust, throwing the hand from his grip as if it had burned him. He gave Tsunade another blank stare before rushing out of the darkened room, not caring that he'd shoved her out of the way in his rush to be free of the hospital.

"Kakashi!!!"

(Star)(Star)(Star)

If he could have made Sasuke's head explode just by thinking it, the forest floor would be littered with the young man's genius brain. Naruto was beyond pissed, but it was no longer solely at Sasuke. He was fuming at himself as well for acting so jealous over Sasuke's sex life, when he was supposed to feel nothing more than rivalry for his friend.

"But I don't feel anything more than that." He muttered to himself, angrily. "So he can fuck who ever he damn well wants." He continued speed walking to the tower he was supposed to be guarding, knowing full well that somewhere behind him Sasuke was still trying to follow him.

"Where the hell were you, you stupid asshole?!" The jounin in charge yelled at him when he spotted the blonde making his way back to his post. "People have died while you were having your little picnic in the woods!"

"Fuck off." Naruto muttered under his breath, tempted to give the man the middle finger, but the jounin kept ranting as though he hadn't even heard the cursing.

"I've just returned from notifying Tsunade-hime about your little stunt and she's asked to talk to you." Naruto glared openly at the man.

"We're in a war, asshole." He spat ferociously. "You shouldn't have the time to run crying to Tsunade." This time he really did give the guy the finger.

"Hopefully she'll give you the punishment you deserve, demon. This will teach you to disobey orders." Naruto glared at the man again and headed off towards the hospital, where the rude jounin had directed him to go.

He walked through the front doors, almost knocked over by the overbearing form of his old genin team leader. The jounin didn't even look up as he walked past Naruto, his face completely devoid of emotions.

"Oi, Kakashi-sensei!" He called out, but the man had disappeared before he could say any more. Frowning, he asked the nurse at the front desk where he could find the Hokage and followed the directions up to the second floor.

"Naruto!" Tsunade called to him, catching sight of him before he'd even made it to the second level.

"Please don't lecture me too long." Naruto exclaimed, looking bored already. "I've still got a lot of work to do." She looked confused at his words.

"Lecture?" she repeated the word. "What for?"

"That jounin in charge of my placement came to see you right?" Naruto frowned suddenly, wondering what was going on. "I thought I was here to get my punishment for abandoning my post."

"Oh, no." Tsunade replied, shaking her head slowly. "I didn't ask to see you for that reason. Iruka's dead." His face went slack at the blunt words, cringing at the lack of sensitivity with which they were delivered.

"That's not funny."

"I wish it was!" She cried, looking pale. "I don't know how else to tell you, but to say that he was killed in the forest on the other side of the village. Kakashi brought him in, but by the time he made it here, he'd been dead for a while." She led him into the room Iruka's body lay and walked him up to the table. Naruto stared down, speechless, at the broken body of his former teacher and closest guardian.

"I wanted you to know from me, before you heard it elsewhere..." Tsunade watched him with sorrow filled eyes, swallowing the pain of watching the young man's heart shatter.

"No, no, no..." He whispered, chanting the word over in his head.

"I know he was close to you, and you must be hurting, but-" She was cut off when Naruto rounded on her, eyes blazing with unshed tears.

"FUCK YOU!" He screamed. "You wouldn't know how I'm feeling even if I wrote it down on paper! He was my only family! The first and only person who actually cared enough to look after me. The first and only person who cared whether I lived or died each day, and now that person is dead forever!!" He snapped viciously, lip curling when she raised a hand to comfort him. She looked startled at his sudden mood swing, but refused to give up.

"You've always had someone to care about you, whether it was Jiraiya or some other family members. I HAVE NOTHING! You don't know how I feel because you wouldn't know what it's like to live a day in my shoes, to lose everything in all at once."

"You have me, and your friends, and Jiraiya! You're not alone in this." She stepped closer but understood his anger. "We can help you get through this."

"You just don't get it, do you?!" He began blinking fiercely, trying to hold back his tears, but Tsunade saw them. "No, no, no..."

"It's okay to cry for a loved one." She whispered, feeling her own heart break. She took another step closer, but this snapped him back to reality again and he jumped back from her, looking like a cornered animal.

"NO!!" He yelled. "I stopped crying a long time ago, and I'm not going to start now. I'll never be able to force them back if I allow myself this weakness."

"It's not a weakness!" Tsunade protested, but he ignored her completely. Looking back down at Iruka's pale face, he closed his eyes, allowing his brow to furrow in sadness.

"I have to go." He muttered, sidestepping the Hokage and rushing out of the room, only to be stopped by a hand grabbing his arm. He spun around quickly, not thinking, as his fist connected to the first available spot on the person who'd grabbed him.

"Fuck, Naruto." Sasuke hissed, taking a step back, but not relinquishing his hold on his friend's upper arm. "What was that for?"

"If you don't let me go right now, I'll Rasengan a hole through your chest." Naruto muttered tearing his arm free, both of them knowing he would do it. Sasuke took a step back, watching confusedly as the young man ran off down the hall.

"Nothing good ever comes out of wars." Tsunade whispered softly behind him. He turned around, sending her a glance that demanded an explanation. "He just learned of Iruka's death." She explained, nodding to the now-covered corpse. He looked behind her, into the room, and his heart skipped a beat.

"Dead?" He asked, his breath catching in his throat. He knew how much Naruto depended on the chuunin.

"There was nothing I could do to save him." Without another word, Sasuke, too, took off down the hall, hoping to catch up to his rival before he did anything stupid.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

For a few minutes, Sasuke thought he'd lost Naruto for good. He'd never known anything to have the potential impact on the man that this news might, and he was terrified of what might happen. He knew himself to what lengths one might go to relieve the tension, and he couldn't bear to see Naruto fall to such depths.

When he finally caught sight of the elusive blonde hair again, it was in the middle of a crowd of people, obviously Naruto's attempt at blending in long enough to get away. He ran into the crowd, giving into the chase for a few minutes until he finally caught up to his friend, grabbing his arm. He stumbled over his feet when Naruto tried to bolt.

"Naruto, stop!" Sasuke hissed, jerking on the arm in an attempt to get the man to slow down a bit. It worked only long enough for Naruto to whirl around and try to attack him again.

"Why don't you just go to hell and leave me alone." He yelled, trying to land his punches, but not confining himself to just that; using teeth and nails to hurt his rival as much as he could.

"Because I can't!" Sasuke replied, equally frustrated. He growled under his breath and pulled Naruto into the nearest alley, wanting to keep their conversation out of the open. Naruto shoved him out of his personal space when he saw that they were alone in the shadows of the two buildings they were in between. "If you hadn't noticed, I care about you, dobe!"

"Why should you care about me?" Naruto retaliated. "I'm just your fuck toy." He sneered maliciously, repeating the same words he'd used to describe himself after Sasuke had found him in Orochimaru's possession, only then he'd called himself Orochimaru's 'fuck toy'. Sasuke was taken aback by the use of the words.

"I'm your friend and comrade." He retorted, feeling the need to defend himself against Naruto's attack. "I've never thought of you like that." He pulled Naruto to his chest, crushing him in a bear hug. "Stop fighting against me." He whispered, trying to keep his anger in check.

"Let me go!" Naruto screamed, despite the fact that his mouth was pressed into Sasuke's shoulder, muffling the sound.

"What ever you were planning to do when you got home, won't do you any good." Sasuke replied, pretending he didn't hear Naruto's demand. "It won't bring Iruka back." He felt Naruto's body tense in his arms at those words and almost wished he could take them back, but knew they had to be said.

"Let me go." Naruto screamed, renewing his fighting spirit, even going so far as to bring his feet into the battle, but still Sasuke clung to Naruto.

"No, I'm all you have left!"

"Not even!" He could feel Naruto starting to give up the fight and allowed his arms to loosen slightly. "I've just lost all the love in my life." Naruto looked up at Sasuke and gave him the nastiest look he could manage. "Not that it's really any of your business."

"We're best friends." Sasuke replied. "If not me, then who?" The blonde turned his head away, trying to avoid Sasuke's blood-red eyes.

"Best friends don't do what we do." He whispered. "They're not supposed to be confused about this sort of thing. I don't even understand what's going on anymore!"

"Let me help."

"Help?!" Naruto growled, grabbing onto Sasuke's side, digging his nails into the skin under his shirt. He figured if he couldn't break free he would give hurt as much as he was getting. "Can you bring back the only person who cared? Iruka was the only person who showed me compassion and loved me for what I was."

"I've been there for the times Iruka hasn't!" Sasuke exclaimed, defending himself again. "I care about you as much, if not more than Iruka ever did. He was only with you for a few years in the academy. I've been with you constantly ever since! Do you want me to prove it to you?"

"How can you prove a thing like that?" Sasuke hesitated for a moment, both expecting and not expecting his rival to accept his challenge. He thought about it for a second before an idea came to him.

"Let me make love to you." Like Sasuke, Naruto stumbled over his own train of thought at the blunt challenge. His heart leapt into his throat and for a moment he thought he would be sick. He glared at his supposed best friend, tears still present in his eyes, but disgust taking over his features.

"I'm nothing but a sex object to you." He spat ferociously. "You're sick. It's not love to you, it's just sex. How could you think of something like that at a time like this? We're at war."

"What else do you want from me!? All this genius and I don't know how to make everything alright for you! I can't stand to see you in this much pain." He yelled back. "It's all I know how to do for you. It's the only way I know how to fix things."

"It's not going to fix anything." Naruto retorted. "You don't love me; no one does anymore."

"That's untrue!" Sasuke exclaimed. "There are tons of people in Konohagakure who care very deeply about you."

"I said love." Naruto looked away from Sasuke's eyes, starting to lose his edge.

"Sakura-san loves you." Sasuke answered. "Kakashi does, too. There's also Shikamaru and Kiba. We all love you."

"Then why aren't they here trying to help me?" Naruto asked, hurt seeping into his voice. "Or is this just me being selfish?" The older teen shook his head, smiling sadly.

"No one but me you and Kakashi know about Iruka. Kakashi is trying to handle his own grief, but I'm here. I'm offering you a... tangible form of love. It's not just words and flowers."

"It's something lovers do!" Naruto argued, trying to steel himself for another argument, but losing the will to fight again. "We're not gay! It won't help me."

"It's only me, Sasuke, not the entire male population of Konohagakure and it's not as though it's an act we've never done before." He winced, feeling the nails digging further into his skin. He wanted to prove that he could be there for his friend, but he didn't know any other way to show his loyalty. "I said it before and I'll say it again, let me be the one you vent on, especially in times like these. It feels as though it's me dying when you're hurting this way."

"No, this is just you trying to get me into bed." Naruto protested, losing conviction with each word.

"I'm not. Really. If I wanted someone that desperately, I wouldn't have gone about it this way." Sasuke explained. "I don't want you to be alone right now." The blonde thought about his rival's words for a moment, stepping back out of the warm circle of arms, slowly.

In the blink of an eye, he had pulled out a kunai from the holster at his thigh and had it pressed against his wrist. Sasuke took in a startled gasp, involuntarily, and his body tensed up at the sight.

"What the hell are you doing?" He growled under his breath, a warning clearly evident in his voice.

"You say all these things," Naruto replied, softly. "You say that you care about me, and that you're my best friend, but do you trust me?" Sasuke nodded without hesitation. If it was just a simple matter of trust, there was no problem.

"Of course." Naruto smirked.

"Do you trust me not to take my own life because of all this pain?" The older genin clenched his teeth, stopping to turn the question over in his mind, while dealing with a question of his own. Could he put his absolute trust in Naruto, even when it came to saving the blonde's life? The answer should have been obvious but his mind was clouded by the sight in front of him and the knowledge of the chuunin lying dead on the hospital bed. He hesitated slightly before answering, and pulled out a kunai of his own, pressing it against his neck.

"It's the same question." He replied. "Do you trust me to still this kunai if you kill yourself?" Naruto let out a dry sob, turning away from his rival in shame, not fighting back when Sasuke knocked the weapon from his hands and let go of his own kunai.

"It had nothing to do with trusting you..." Naruto whispered, glaring at the stones that littered the ground.

"What do you mean?"

"I trusted that you would be able to stop me." He replied. "And you did." Sasuke nodded, pulling Naruto into another tight embrace, burying his head in the mass of blonde locks. They stayed like that before Naruto allowed himself to be led back to his apartment, wordlessly agreeing to Sasuke's previous offer.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"This isn't such a good idea." Naruto exclaimed when they'd reached his front door. He pushed Sasuke away from his personal space and shook his head. He'd had enough time to think everything over in his head again, and he still couldn't stop the images of Iruka lying dead on the bed out of his mind.

"You shouldn't let these things be bottled up, Naruto." Sasuke exclaimed, not deterred by Naruto's reluctance. "I'm the perfect example of someone who kept everything on the inside, and look what happened. I nearly lost my entire life; I was so consumed by my hatred. We've proven a dozen different ways that this helps." He indicated what they had been about to do. Naruto's forehead creased in nervousness and anxiety. He shook his head, trying to hold onto his arguments.

"It won't help. You're just trying to take advantage of me."

"I wouldn't do that!" Sasuke interrupted, but Naruto continued, his voice getting louder with each word.

"You're only doing this because you feel sorry for me. You think I'm in pain, but I'm not!"

"Then why the fuck don't I believe you?!" Sasuke screamed back. A few doors opened up, curious neighbours looking out, but at the sight of the pair, they understood and went back into their own little lives. Neither of the two even noticed the other residents.

"Because you're mentally retarded!" Naruto retorted, lamely.

"Unlike Tsunade-hime, I understand what it's like to lose everything I ever loved in two seconds." The taller genin replied. Naruto squeezed his eyes shut, trying not to listen to his rival's voice of reason and to keep the tears away. They both knew Sasuke was right. The Uchiha nodded suddenly, coming to a final decision.

"Fine, if you think I'm wrong, I'll give you a choice." He stared at the blonde sternly. "If you truly don't want me here, and you believe completely that you don't need me here, then unlock your door and lock it behind you." Naruto turned around and unlocked the door, only pausing when he heard the intake of breath behind him, signalling that Sasuke wasn't finished talking. "But if you figure out that you really do need me, and that you do need that person to vent on... invite me in." He sighed, letting the entire thing rest on Naruto's shoulders.

They both waited for a second in relative silence before Naruto walked into his apartment and shut the door behind him. Sasuke heard a loud thump and knew Naruto had slammed his head on the door. He closed his eyes tightly, feeling the bitter taste of failure creep up his throat and he had to fight to contain his anger. Bringing his hands up to brush his bangs out of his face, he muttered a string of curses softly, knowing his shoulders were shaking.

He wasn't angry at Naruto, though. He was angry with himself. He was frustrated at the blatant fact that he couldn't even help one person, his own best friend. He was about to turn and walk away when he heard a small voice from the other side of Naruto's door.

"Sasuke?" It sounded timid and unsure of itself. "Are you still there?"

"Yes." He replied, taking a small step towards the door, curiosity shooting through his mind.

"I can't open the door for you." Naruto replied.

"I understand."

"But... I do need you. I need you so much." Taking the obvious hint for what it was worth, Sasuke opened the door and embraced Naruto fiercely.

"I'll always be there for you, Kitsune." He whispered, holding his best friend as tight as he could without breaking ribs. "I'm not going to let go, so lay all your troubles down. I'm with you, now. Lay them down on me." He could feel his shirt becoming damp with silent tears and almost broke down himself. "You can cry, Naruto. There's nobody here but us." He pulled back from the embrace enough to kiss away one of the tear tracks that stained his cheeks. Though neither was paying attention to where they were going, they somehow made it into the bedroom, where Naruto finally allowed Sasuke to make love to him.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke stepped back into Naruto's bedroom, cleaning himself off with a damp towel. He looked over to the bed to see that his rival had fallen asleep. He sat on the edge of the bed and gently cleaned the blonde off, careful not to wake the fragile man. He looked to the floor suddenly, wishing he had the power to change everything.

"Maybe you don't know this, but... I'd give my life to bring back Iruka, if only to have saved you this suffering; if only to prevent your tears. Why, after all this time, am I still not strong enough to protect you?"

(End of Chapter)

Holy shit... I'm so sorry that this took a month to get around to. Part of me was busy, honest and truly, and the other part couldn't get over the fact that it felt like Sasuke was taking advantage of Naruto. It was only a last minute change that led to putting the choice in Naruto's hands and now I'm happy with it (more or less).

To JeT101: I've never said I thought SasuSaku lovers should die... to each their own. If you like that pairing, good for you! (not in the sarcastic way), and if you don't then that's okay too. I've never really been much for bashing anyone. Personally I don't like the pairing because I feel it's much too out of character for Sasuke (and a lot of Sakura is chasing an impossible dream). Aside from that... go for it!

To Naino: Thanks for the review. This is one of the few that I've saved in my review box cause it's a meaningful review. Thanks for all your observations. I really do have a strong attachment to Naruto... I can relate to him on EVERY level, from the loneliness to the bigger-than-life dreams. I will always see it as my story, but I do write it for the reading pleasure of everyone else. I already know how it ends... I already know this story. It would be redundant if I wrote it for myself, but also don't worry about me being pressured. I've taken a suggestion or two about how things should flow, but in terms of the general plot, nothing will alter my mind.

To Tsugath: Thanks for reading, and keeping an open mind. I hope you see that this story isn't completely about the love/lust relationship, and focuses more on Naruto's relationships with everyone around him. No worries about Gaara, he's not interested in either of them, he was just messing with their minds.

To Kiiroyuri (AkaNoShika): I liked your analysis-type review. It helps me notice things about my style that I don't even notice. Like I've said a million times before, this helps me out a ton. Even though, for the most part, you're just repeating the story back to me, you're giving me input on what worked and what didn't. About Gaara.. in case you didn't catch it... Itachi and Gaara are more or less working together... Gaara led Naruto into the forest with that 'sand' ninja, and Itachi's illusion led Sasuke to Gaara. The demon is merely 'asserting his power'.

To Red Rose: Naruto shoved Sasuke away from him. Sasuke ended up on his butt.

To the Laer: poor you and PSATs. Hope you did well on them! Thanks for the criticisms... when I get the chance to, I'm going to look over it again and redo some things (I've been planning to do a revised version of this for a while... but I'm lazy). I hope this satisfied your hunger for SasuNaru-ness. So how many steps forward and back did I go this time?

To Mi-kun: er... yeah... I forgot what those 'inconsistencies' were... heh heh...

To Youmahime: about Itachi's motives... he does have them... but they won't be revealed for a while longer.

LAST TWO THINGS: (RELEVANT FOR PRETTY MUCH EVERYONE) In the next chapter... two things will be talked about even more, the chuunin vest and the contents of Naruto's death room.

Thanks for reading!!!


	58. Morning of Nightmares

I actually have a good excuse for taking so long. I couldn't get past the first scene… my brain didn't like the direction I was heading in, so it stopped functioning until I changed it to what you will read below. Mostly it was pertaining to the whole sex scene the night before…

I apologize for taking nearly two months to finish, but I should be over my writer's block, and ready to get back to work!

Thanks to my editor Mi-kun for helping me with the little details… yes, I like my commas.

Chapter Title: 58. Morning of Nightmares

The light filtered through the room, contrasting vividly with the horrors that were still occurring under the sun's bright happy rays. Naruto shifted in his bed, sighing when the warmth suddenly left his shoulder, the sheets being pulled away from him. He grumbled a little, sleep still muddling his brain, and tried to pull the sheets back in place but was met with resistance. He shifted again, trying to regain the lost warmth and failing horribly, but froze when he saw the person who had been hogging the sheets.

At first he frowned, wondering why Sasuke was still clutching the comforter deep in sleep, when he was bombarded with the remembrance of why Sasuke was there in the first place. He flinched, as though burned, and nearly fell out of the bed in his rush to distance himself from what had happened.

"Sasuke…" He whispered, horrified. Then something stirred in the pit of his stomach and he raced to the bathroom, just barely making it to the toilet in time for a rush of bile to rise from his throat. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly, wishing away the pain, and tried to ignore the taste of the fluid as is flowed out of his mouth. He sat on the floor for a good couple of minutes until he could get control of himself long enough to end the dry heaving as his stomach had long been empty.

Finally catching his breath, He pushed away from the toilet bowl and pounded his fist on the ceramic tiles of his floor, not caring that he was close to breaking bones. He needed to let out his pain in the only way he could feel safe about.

He bit his lip to keep from crying out at the pain, before standing up at last and leaving the bathroom. He stumbled, at first, his legs still wobbly from the combination of being sick physically and emotionally, but managed to make his way to the clean, white door of the room he always kept locked.

Placing a palm on the plain surface, he scrunched up his face, waiting until the wave of guilt had passed over him once more. He was no stranger to it, survivor's guilt, as he felt it daily, but usually he at least had some distance between those he felt remorse for and himself, but this was for someone he felt he could call an older brother, and the pain the hole left was almost unbearable. He opened his eyes and stared at the door again, eyes drawn to a corner where the white paint had slowly began to chip away and raised a finger to flick at the pieces that were about to fall off. Instead of tracing the edges like he thought his finger was going to do, he watched as the digit began tracing the characters of his former teacher's name.

He sniffled again, holding back the tears, but his body crumpled to the floor, chest still pressed up against the wood of the door as his body was wracked with dry, silent sobs.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke had woken up when the bed had shaken with Naruto's disappearance, and almost instantly the cold had settled in, but he stayed under the covers for a few moments longer, allowing his friend the time to collect himself.

Still opting to give Naruto a few more minutes to himself, he pushed back the covers and swung his legs over the side of the bed and got up. He turned back and stared aimlessly at the empty bed, still tousled, wondering about the implications of what had occurred the previous night. He figured that if they were getting all of their firsts out of the way, it was only right for that first to be with Naruto as well, but something about it felt wrong. He didn't regret what he'd done, but there was something still bothering him about what had been done. Maybe Naruto had been right about him taking advantage of the blonde in his misery, but he couldn't think of any other way to be useful in such a tender situation.

Shrugging it off for the time being, he rubbed the sleep from his eyes and began his morning ritual of making the bed and tidying up the clothes that had been discarded on the floor the night before. He continued like this for a few minutes before he heard Naruto's sobs coming from the other room. He dropped the clothing into a pile on the bed and left the room, quickly and quietly, just like his training had ingrained in him.

"Naruto?" He asked, softly, when he came across the boy lying on the floor. He eyed the door cautiously, noting the way one of the young man's hands clutched the door handle tightly. When there was no reply he tried again, a little bit louder. This time he saw the reaction, more than heard it. The soft murmur of sobbing was beginning to fade, but the muscles of Naruto's bare back became incredibly tense. He didn't say anything more as his rival turned his head, letting go of the handle to rub his eyes a bit.

"Sasuke, you're still here." He muttered lifelessly. Sasuke frowned and nodded, crouching down so he was eye level with his friend.

"Of course."

"You should leave." Naruto exclaimed, turning his head to the side. He flinched when Sasuke raised his hand to the blonde's cheek and the older man hesitated before opting to lower his hand. Naruto continued. "There are people who depend on you and your skills to keep them alive. The war isn't going to wait for you."

Sasuke frowned at Naruto's confusing behaviour, but made no attempt to leave, not even when his friend pulled himself back up and began walking towards his bedroom.

"We can get dressed and go back to the front lines together." He said, following Naruto into the room. He grabbed Naruto's arm to stop him. "We're not alone."

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Naruto growled, ripping his arm from the Uchiha's grasp. "People are dying right as we stand here doing nothing."

"You can't seriously be thinking of going back there."

"Why the fuck not?"

"You're too emotional to be going into battle." Naruto narrowed his eyes, taking a step closer to his rival.

"I know how to keep my head." He snarled, his behaviour taking Sasuke completely off guard.

"Like hell you do." Sasuke gave a mock laugh. "Just seconds ago I found you lying at the door of a room that you refuse to show me, sobbing. What's in there? Why are there so many secrets in your life?" Naruto faltered in his anger, a blank expression crossing his features before he frowned in contemplation. "Why do I feel like I don't even know who you are?"

"I just need my privacy." Naruto retorted, keeping the slight edge in his voice.

"Your entire life is hidden from the world!" Sasuke shot back, gaining enough momentum to confront his friend on one of these same secrets. "What about the vest? When are you going to tell me how you got it? I know it's not Iruka's. You lied to me. It's just a vest, why the fuck do you lie to me about a damn vest?!"

"Why don't you mind your own goddamn business? Just because I lost someone, doesn't mean I'm suddenly going to break and confess all my sins to you." He made to run from the room, but was stopped quickly by Sasuke's hand on his wrist again.

"Why do you have to hide everything?"

"You assume I've got things to hide." Sasuke sighed and pointed to the room behind them.

"That room, the vest, and I know there's hundreds of other things." Sasuke said. "Stop lying!!" He shouted, shoving Naruto backwards into a wall. The blonde winced at the sudden flurry of pain.

"I go into that room every day and kill myself, happy?" Naruto exclaimed with a smirk. "The vest was given to me because I took it up the ass from Orochimaru, and you want to know what else? I slit my wrists because there aren't enough bad guys to kill to fill my daily blood quota."

"What do you mean?"

"Oh, you didn't know my demon is bloodthirsty like Gaara's?" Sasuke frowned, ignoring the sarcasm. He could tell when Naruto was being obviously belligerent.

"No, about the vest." Sasuke replied. "I know when you're lying and when you aren't, no matter how fast you talk. You got it because of that?"

"No, I already told you, Iruka gave it to me." Sasuke yelled something that Naruto didn't catch and his Sharingan eyes began to spin slowly, showing the progression of his anger. He slammed his friend into the wall again and narrowed his eyes in a glare.

"Usotsuki!!!"

"How the hell would you know if I'm lying unless you were there?! What would you do about it anyways? Orochimaru is dead. The vest is mine, even though it's the most horrifying thing I own."

"How?"

"I got it because that snake raped me. I 'took one for the team', and that's Tsunade's way of repaying me. Do you really think I want something that reminds me everyday of the reason for which I earned it? I would rather suck face with Jiraiya's wrinkled ass than own something like that. And then she lies by saying other people would be getting promotions, but they happened so slowly, and you guys were never moved to chuunin, and I couldn't bear to have the world know what a whore Uzumaki Naruto really is. He slept with the enemy to move up the hierarchal food chain." Naruto sighed, suddenly looking very tired. "You should leave."

"I don't think you're a whore." Naruto looked up at his friend and laughed viciously.

"How could you say that?! Or did last night entirely slip your mind?"

"What?" Naruto shook his head, quelling his anger slightly and shoved Sasuke away. He went into his room and picked up the man's clothing, shoving them into his open arms.

"This needs to end." He sighed, pushing Sasuke backwards again. "We can't keep doing this." Sasuke looked confused, but Naruto wasn't in the mood for anything. "Don't play dumb! Do you know how cheap this is? How wrong?! You're just using me for the sex, and I'm using you as a throwback to solve all of my problems."

"It's not like that at all, Naruto." But Naruto had finally cleared his head long enough to become set in his convictions.

"It's exactly like that. What kind of person am I if I keep coming to you when something goes wrong? I need to stop this now. I need to stop being weak. I need to learn to walk on my own two feet because eventually there won't be anyone left to carry me."

"Why don't you stop with the self-pitying angst, dobe? I'm not going anywhere." Sasuke crossed his arms, planting his feet firmly on the ground, remaining stubborn until the end. He wasn't about to let Naruto just push him out of his life. It would take a great deal more to make that happen. Of course, when Naruto's entire posture shifted lower and a feral growl slipped past his curled lips, he wondered fleetingly if he's maybe been wrong.

Within seconds, Naruto was on him, clothes scattered to the floor, forgotten, while teeth and nails were sent hurtling towards him in a fury that was almost missed by the Sharingan user, even with his unique eyes. If he could have stopped the assault, he would have asked what Naruto's problem was, but they'd finally reached a point where actions spoke louder than words, and Sasuke was finally going to meet the new Naruto.

Since the time Naruto had returned from his out of-body experience, the older of the two had never actually seen Naruto in a real fight. Sure, they'd sparred a number of times, but it had never been serious, and had never warranted for Naruto to show the other side of him; the side that was fused permanently with the demon that had lived inside of him for so long.

Sasuke stumbled backwards, startled, and tried to get away or fight back, but he had no weapons and he was only wearing a pair of boxers, leaving the skin on his arms back and chest open for an attack. He let out a puff of breath when one of Naruto's clawed hands left a set of scratches down his front, but he didn't run. Instead, he used his speed and size to his advantage and tackled Naruto to the ground, pinning both arms to his sides to avoid any more injuries. Already Naruto had drawn more blood from Sasuke in a matter of seconds than any other enemy in their entire lifetimes.

"I'll go, if that's what you really want." Sasuke whispered into Naruto's ear, his chin resting on the blonde's shoulder. Both of their bodies were heaving from exertion, and being so close to Naruto, Sasuke could distinctly hear the fast-paced pounding of his friend's heart. It was a few seconds before Naruto was calm enough to respond.

"I want." He hissed, as though he was in pain. He relaxed in Sasuke's grip, and when the older man's grip loosened, he freed his hands and enveloped the Uchiha in a tight hug, which was returned in earnest. "I will not sacrifice our friendship for anything in the world, including sex." Sasuke nodded into his shoulder before slowly letting go and standing up, away from Naruto. He smiled softly, understanding that this was probably something he should have done sooner, before he hurt the man he considered his best friend. He quickly collected his clothes and bent down, wincing slightly as his new wounds moved against each other, to give Naruto a quick peck on the cheek.

"I would never do anything to break your trust in me, so I'll go." And with that he left the small apartment, and Naruto, who was still sitting on the floor, staring at the floor and walls, which were no longer the white they had been, but dripping blood red. He sighed softly, none of the pain he'd just caused setting in too well.

"Will our relationship always be filled with so much blood?" Naruto whispered, rubbing away old tears and didn't notice when a small trickle of blood slid down his cheek instead.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

For anyone who looked hard enough, Kakashi could be found sitting in silent solitude on a tree branch overlooking a small pond. If he looked over his arm, he could clearly see his reflection, which was why he'd chosen that particular spot. He stared at his mirror image, tracing the edges of his scar with his eyes.

Uchiha Obito probably wouldn't be too pleased with him. He might have promised never to sacrifice his comrades for the sake of the mission, but he'd never said anything about possible love interests, though Umino Iruka was no longer an interest but a moment that came and went while he wasn't looking.

Kakashi cursed at himself and looked away from the water. He was upset with himself for many reasons, but the main one was that he still followed the thinking he had when he was younger and Obito was still alive, the only difference was instead of sacrificing his comrades' lives, Kakashi had sacrificed his own life. Every night he had gone to sleep telling himself he was doing the right thing, protecting Iruka and himself by denying what they possibly could have had, and every night he had nightmares of this very thing. Half of him was even debating whether or no this could be another dream, but in those he never felt the loss as strongly as he was while he mourned in the trees.

He had tried to pretend it hadn't happened, but eventually the truth sunk in. He then put himself into holding back the enemy until that was taken care of and the gates secured for the night. He tried to take his mind off the thought by focusing his energy on training, reading and other things he used to do, but he kept catching glimpses of a chuunin vest or a brown ponytail out of the corner of his eye, until he finally couldn't stand to be near the village any longer.

He sighed and leaned his head on the bark of the tree trunk, closing his eyes languidly. He was almost surprised that he had yet to feel the real pain and tears that he knew was supposed to come with mourning, but he felt nothing but the hollowness inside his ribs that threatened to take his breath away, but left the rest of his body numb. In some ways, Kakashi thought, it served him right. It was that higher power's way of saying, 'you snooze you lose'. He'd had so many opportunities to enjoy the short life that came with being a shinobi, and he'd blown every single one of his chances, despite Iruka's warnings.

'One day, you'll find that I have gone.' He had said. Later, when he had recognised the words as from a song, he had found it amusing.

"For tomorrow may rain, so I'll follow the sun." Kakashi finished softly. It seemed that everyone knew that Kakashi's time with Iruka was limited except him. He closed his eyes again, as a whisper of wind blew through the leaves, causing the shadows on his face to dance wildly before settling down again.

He knew that he would have to return to the battle field again, kill more shinobi that threatened his country, and otherwise get on with his life, but for that brief moment he wanted to believe he was eight years old again, listening to Obito crow on about friendship and that anyone who didn't care about their comrades were worse than those that broke the rules. He wanted to hear Obito tell him that it was okay to be proud in his father, that it was okay to have a life outside of his job, and that it was okay to miss his best friend.

He knew what Obito would tell him with his overly loud, but ever-confident voice.

"Kakashi, you're only human." But life wasn't fair and now Uchiha Obito was nothing more than a name on a stone, a memory and one Sharingan eye.

Kakashi jumped down from the tree, giving the pond one last glance before he headed back to the village where the sounds of battle were beginning to float through the air again.

"Someday you'll know I was the one," Kakashi sang to himself. "But tomorrow may rain, so I'll follow the sun…"

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Where's Kakashi? Where's Naruto?" Tsunade asked, looking through the crowd of ninja that had assembled before her in the place that the funeral for the Third Hokage had been held. Jiraiya shrugged, looking for the pair himself. Neither could see them anywhere.

"Who knows, but they'll be here. They would never let Konohagakure down."

"That's not what I'm worried about." Tsunade shook her head, tightening her grip on a scroll she was going to read out loud to the people. "It's them I'm worried about. They suffered a huge loss."

"They'll survive it, don't worry so much." Jiraiya nodded to the far edge of the crowd where Naruto had just shown up, wearing his usual clothing, but staying far away from the crowd. Tsunade sighed, but didn't say anything more, wondering if was okay to just survive.

"There's been word of a large scale strike within the next twenty-four hours." She exclaimed to the crowd, which instantly quieted at the sound of her voice. "At the moment there are still battles being fought on the outskirts of the village, but we've already lost a number of our shinobi, your friends." She hesitated when she saw Sasuke moving to leave, but continued when she realised he was only moving closer to his friend. "Sunagakure is looking to occupy this village and kill the Hokage, while their allies are looking for something else." Her gaze rested on Naruto for a few moments before continuing on over the entire crowd. "Uchiha Itachi, I have been informed, is among the allies. Along with Gaara of the dessert, Temari and their brother, Sunagakure's new kage, Kankuro, these are shinobi to be careful of. Sand is also harbouring all of the former residents of the Sound village. Please be careful."

Naruto, who had been watching Sasuke out of the corner of his eye, was the only one to notice when Sasuke's eyes began to spin slowly at the mention of his brother. He knew the man was thinking about his own faults and decided to stop these thoughts before they spread like a disease. He stepped a bit closer to his friend and linked their pinkies in a promise.

Sasuke was startled from his thoughts and turned to the blonde, but nodded in understanding. He gave the pinkie a squeeze before they both dropped their hands to the side. It was an unspoken promise, one that they both understood, but if asked about, would never be able to explain in words.

Within seconds, Tsunade was shouting out orders, and chaos ensued, separating the friends, if only for a while. Naruto moved his battles outside of the main village, hoping to be able to stop as many of the enemy ninja before they could make it in too far.

As he was jumping through the trees, two sound jounin and a chuunin kunoichi on his tail, he spotted glimpses of Kakashi, who was fighting like there was no tomorrow. He paused for a second to marvel at the skills his former teacher was showing, but couldn't stare too long as he was completely surrounded by the enemy. What he had noticed, though, was that Kakashi was leaving a trail of dead or severely injured ninjas in his wake. None were leaving him unscarred, which was something Naruto had to make sure as well.

He steadied himself on the branch and quickly sized up the enemy, before they tackled him. He quickly launched a few clones at the men and hurled himself at the female's gut, hoping to take her by surprise, but they were all ready for his tricks.

"Three on one is hardly fair." Naruto whined. "I'm just a genin!" The girl laughed, throwing a couple of shuriken at the young man in front of her. They appeared to all be about Naruto's age, too.

"We've heard about you, Uzumaki Naruto." One of the jounin spoke up, explaining the girl's mocking laughter. "Uchiha-sama wanted you specially delivered to him." Naruto narrowed his eyes at this, and gathered his chakra to his feet, racing away from the ninja, straight up into the canopy of the trees. He used his chakra to keep steady on the smaller branches and began to run, hoping to find Sasuke along the way.

On the one hand, he knew that now that he'd been spotted and named, he would need the extra help in order to get rid of the enemies on his tail, but he had a feeling that Sasuke had somehow managed to find himself in just as much trouble Naruto was about to be in the second he was caught and he wasn't one to leave his friends when they needed help. Especially not after the look he'd seen in his rival's eyes at the mention of his older brother.

Something about that look just spoke volumes about the first thing the younger Uchiha would do when they had been dismissed. It would take a brain-dead rock to not realise he would go after his brother first and foremost, above all other enemies, and Naruto knew that if the two remaining Uchihas found one another, Sasuke wouldn't allow the battle to end until one of them was incapable of ever raising another weapon.

It took a few minutes, but finally Naruto had managed to shake the pursuing ninjas off of his trail, and pick up on Sasuke's. He followed the trail of writhing bodies, caught in the way of either brother's mind-blowing eyesight. He just hoped that he could get to Sasuke's side before things progressed past the point of no return. He landed on the rooftop across from the one he'd spotted Itachi and Sasuke fighting atop, Sasuke panting for breath, while the older, more experienced stood off to the side, looking indifferent. Nearly the entire stone floor of the top of the building had been torn up by Sasuke's devastating Chidori attack.

On the other hand, Naruto was the farthest thing from Sasuke's mind. The Sharingan wheel in his eyes was spinning at a blinding speed, and the curse seal on his neck throbbed, despite Orochimaru being long since dead. His own anger had activated it again. He spat to the side, his saliva tinted red with blood.

He lunged forward again, not taking into account that his brother didn't even seem fazed by his continuous attacks. He slipped a kunai between his teeth and shot his fists forward at speeds that even Rock Lee would be jealous of, but still Itachi was able to avoid injury by dodging lazily. He growled when none of his attacks were landing and jerked his neck, snapping his face to the side, and let fly the kunai from his mouth, an exploding scroll attached to its handle. The blade scraped past his brother, exploding the second it touched the man's creamy skin, but all the damage hit one of Itachi's exploding clones, missing the real thing.

Sasuke whirled around, wondering where the puppet master could be, but seeing no one but Naruto. He hissed, clutching his chest, where Itachi had gotten in a few hits, and walked over to the blonde, who had watched the entire thing.

"Where did he go, dobe?" He demanded, none of his earlier tenderness in his voice, sending chills down Naruto's spine with its iciness.

"I don't know. I didn't see him." Sasuke didn't seem to accept his answer, and reached out to shake his friend into revealing the answer, when a voice behind him halted his advances.

"It's not nice to treat your lover like that, little brother." Both young men whirled around to see the real Itachi smirking at them from the ledge of the roof. Before his presence had even settled in Naruto's mind, Sasuke was already charging forward to attack, the man he called his brother.

He quickly found his arm twisted around and his back pulled flush against Itachi's body.

"Trying to show off for the demon?" He whispered mockingly into his brother's ear, only succeeding in fuelling the fire that burned in Sasuke's eyes. Naruto had thought Sasuke had reached his peak limit for rage, but was sadly mistaken when his rival just kept getting angrier and angrier, rage blocking out all other thoughts save the one to kill the man haunting his life. "Do you really think this is your best, Sasuke?"

"Don't you dare speak my name with such familiarity." Sasuke hissed, and continued to struggle within the Akatsuki leader's unyielding grasp. "You won't leave here alive."

"You aren't even strong enough to break free of my arms. How could you possibly be strong enough to defeat Akatsuki?"

"My enemy is you, bastard."

"On the contrary, you know very little about the truth of the matter." Itachi shook his head in disappointment at his sibling's foolishness. "I was never your true enemy. It's the rest of the world who is after you and the secrets hidden in your blood. I'm just one of the levels you need to pass in order to be able to face those demons."

"You killed mom and dad, for that you have to die." Itachi nodded and released the younger man.

"For that, I know I will. You will make sure of that, if you can ever achieve the power that you were destined to possess. But you are nothing but a child compared to me. How do you expect to continue living if I could easily snap your neck right here?"

"You can't kill someone who's already dead. You killed me when you killed the clan." He growled and lunged forward, eyes blazing red and body becoming stained with the tendrils of the curse seal as it took over and flourished in his rage.

"Sasuke, you need to stop. If you push yourself farther than you are capable, you will kill yourself before I can even lay a finger on you." Sasuke ignored the warning, and continued to fight, both Uchiha brothers ignoring Naruto's presence, as he watched the battle from the sidelines.

"The only one who will die is you!!!" Sasuke screamed, not noticing that his rage and lust for power were hurting him more than they were helping him, the curse depleting his chakra reserves considerably in a matter of seconds.

"You're too weak, stop this now!" Itachi yelled back, frowning at his younger brother. "You're only hurting yourself!" Sasuke let out a bark of a laugh.

"And give up? I don't think so. I've pledged my life to this, and I'm willing to sacrifice all to see it through to the end." Itachi cursed under his breath and closed his eyes for a moment, forced to use his last resort.

"Mangekyou Sharingan!" He called, activating his bloodline limit and sending his brother into another world of pain and torture, but no matter how torturous the effects of his Sharingan, he realised that Sasuke wouldn't give up as easily as that, and was struggling to fight this attack off, despite the possible damage to his mind the struggle would leave behind.

"Sasuke!" Naruto screamed, running forward. Itachi looked up and shook his head.

"Stop him, Uzumaki!" He demanded, stepping backwards from the monster he'd created. "He'll never be able to give me a real challenge if he dies here. I'll come back when he's ready to show me the true strength of the Uchiha lineage." And he disappeared before Naruto had gotten much closer to his friend, who was suffering under so much pain.

The blonde ran forward, arms outstretched to try and cool down his friend's anger, but he froze when he saw Sasuke turn around, red eyes still blazing, curse seal covering so much skin that the pale parts were starting to look like the curse, instead of the other way around. It wasn't what Sasuke looked like that caused Naruto to falter in his attempt to help his rival, but the way he looked at Naruto. There was no longer any distinction between friend and enemy, and the Sharingan had bled through his eyes, the whites no longer white, as rage flooded his system with adrenalin.

"Sasuke…" He whispered hesitantly, hoping that maybe his voice would get through, but it just bounced off the enraged man, who was looking at him as though he were the man who had murdered his family.

"Naruto…" He hissed, long bangs covering his face in shadows. The blonde took in a shuddering breath and had trouble swallowing. "Bastard child… demon fox… you've hurt me, you've hurt everyone. I will make you pay for that… I will kill you."

(End of Chapter)

Okay… in case there are those of you who found that last scene familiar… go read the second last scene in chapter 6. To those of you who are lazy like me, wait till the next chapter and I'll explain it.

To QianYun: Thank you for the kind words. I never really liked reading fight scenes that were all about the physical stuff, mostly cause it was always so hard for me to keep up with all the legs and hands. And no… I don't plan on bringing Iruka back… he'll be mentioned a lot, but I'm not into bringing back the dead… it just doesn't work that way.

To Kali Swifteye: Yeah, I know to some it may be getting redundant, but to tell you the truth, real life is a lot like that. It takes a long time before all the kinks are worked out of any relationship… no promises, but maybe this will be the last one.

To Akutenshi: Yeah, a lot of people were bothered by the fact that Tsunade promised him he wasn't the only one getting a vest… I hope I explained it enough.

To Aisha: No lemon… it seemed too cliché to write about what was happening during closed doors. If I had written it, it would have felt like just another sex scene to me… and I didn't want to lose it.

To Kiiroyuri: In a way, it is because Sasuke was helped by Naruto… but it also goes a little more deeper than just that. And Sasuke found out when he went to the hospital to follow Naruto. About the whole Naruto rejecting Tsunade's understanding… he knows about her brother, but he also knows she had the rest of the village, including Jiraiya, to support her… he believes he has no one.

To Ru Shin: No, the part where the room is going to be revealed is actually planned out in its entirety, but this chapter gave a lot more hints.

To KageJutsu: Yeah, I didn't agree with the love scene at the end either. It just bothered me so much that I ended up taking some of it back. It just kept eating at me that it wasn't a real love scene, but Sasuke taking advantage of Naruto in his current state of mind, so I fixed it.

To Ruby Love: On your review of chapter 17… it took me a few minutes to go through the whole thing again… and I found the place where it said twelve-year-old… and I thought you were right… until I reread the whole paragraph… it was actually talking about when Naruto was twelve and brought Sasuke back to the village, not at that particular point in the story. Sorry if that was confusing.

Oh, and the song Kakashi was singing is "Follow the Sun" by the Beatles. Iruka said the same lines in a chapter with the same name.


	59. And So I Grieve

Two months away and look at what the guilt trip has created… another chapter turned out in a whole four hours. SEXY! Anyways… I'm tired… it's nearly three in the morning… and I didn't finish my homework for school in the morning… (at least now you know where my priorities are… in my little fantasies). Good night.

Chapter 59: And So I Grieve

Naruto froze, not sure if he had even heard his friend correctly. He had to bite his tongue to keep from asking what Sasuke was talking about, because as dumb as Naruto was known to be, nothing could ever mistake the look of utmost hatred that was painted across Sasuke's features. He took a step backwards and laughed it off, trying to keep his pessimistic side away.

"Sasuke, stop saying things like that. It really hurts, you know?" He pleaded with his friend, but it didn't look like any of his words would get through.

"Good." Sasuke barked in reply. "I hope it hurts you a hell of a lot. You deserve every minute of pain you're in." Sasuke lunged forward, pulling back his fist and aiming a Chidori attack straight for Naruto's gut. The blonde stumbled backwards, just barely avoiding the attack, but his clothes weren't so quick to get out of the lightning attack's way, and he ended up losing half of his favourite orange jacket, which he had started wearing open. Sasuke took the defence in stride and continued his assault, throwing in a chakra enhanced kick or two at his rival. As many attacks hit as missed, but Naruto couldn't find the will to fight back. Sasuke ignored the lack of response from his opponent and continued to bash the blonde, verbally and physically.

"You ever wonder why you were left alone?" Sasuke sneered. "I was orphaned by my brother killing my entire family, whereas you were just abandoned. Who would want a demon for a child, anyways?" Naruto flinched at the words, and threw a punch or two, but nothing he did connected with Sasuke's body. He could feel the terror starting to take over him at the sight of one of his deepest fears.

Nearly five years ago, he had been plagued with a series of dark and bloody dreams, and every morning for months he would wake up seeing the same blood red Sharingan eyes glaring at him with so much hatred as he was seeing at that moment. He shuddered, taking another step backwards before seeing an opening in Sasuke's attack to run to the other side of the roof, towards the door that lead downstairs. He vaguely wondered what people would think to know two of Konohagakure's strongest shinobi were currently fighting each other instead of the enemy, but he couldn't think of that for too long, as Sasuke was fast on his toes, and refused to allow his rival a second to catch his breath.

Naruto was trying his hardest to quench his fears, telling himself this wasn't Sasuke but the curse seal speaking through his rage, but every word that Sasuke said cut through him bitterly and there was only so much he could stand up against.

"You're at the root of every problem in this village." Sasuke continued. "If you didn't try to show off so often, I wouldn't have had to go seek power in Orochimaru. I could have been happy with my life, if you hadn't stepped in and shown me how weak I was. How could someone as dumb and worthless as you possibly be surpassing me in being a genin when you only passed because Iruka favoured you? You wouldn't have even passed if Iruka hadn't empathized with your stupid pain." Naruto was shaking, but he pulled out a kunai to defend himself with, steel clashing with the blue flesh of Sasuke's hand. Sasuke pulled the kunai from Naruto's hand and hit knocked him across the jaw with his fist. He didn't even notice the blood on his hands.

"Hell, if you hadn't been on team seven, I could have gotten someone on our team who didn't waste everyone's time and money. Do you realize this entire war is your fault? Akatsuki has made it their life mission to tracking you down, why don't you spare us this misery and go with them? I can't believe how selfish you are. Iruka died because of you. You killed Iruka!!" Naruto shook his head, trying to block out Sasuke's words, but they were just too loud, and they cut just too deep, and as much as he wanted to believe that Sasuke wasn't in his right mind, everything he was saying made sense.

"You can't mean that." He whispered, but Sasuke merely laughed at him and continued to attack. Naruto kept on trying to defend himself but was failing miserably as he couldn't keep out both Sasuke's words and his fists at the same time. He felt like such a coward for letting Sasuke get to him so effectively.

"If you hadn't gone and played hero, I would have been given the power I needed to kill Itachi and we wouldn't be in this mess in the first place. Every little pinch of pain is well deserved for you, dobe. If you hadn't interfered with Orochimaru's plans he wouldn't have raped you." Naruto looked away in shame at that comment, ceasing all efforts to protect himself. If anyone else had said these things to the blonde he would have laughed and told the guy to fuck off, but because it was Sasuke, the last person he could trust, it was like a knife in the back. But Sasuke wasn't done there. He planned to take out every last one of his frustrations, and his words kept cutting into Naruto deeper and deeper. He cried out when Sasuke suddenly pulled a shuriken from its holster and sliced it across his chest.

"If you had kept to yourself instead of playing your stupid tricks, you wouldn't have been stuck in that fucking stupid illusion and you wouldn't have lost your goddamned body. The Kyuubi being released was your stupidity at believing the first person who comes along who claims to be your mother. How many people died there? How many villages did that demon destroy? How many villages did you destroy by just living?"

"Yamero… Sasuke…"He put up his hands to defend himself. "Please, don't do this to me."

"It's always about you, isn't it?"

"You told me I had people who cared."

"What a lie! I don't see anyone coming, whore." Naruto flinched at the degrading name.

"Sasuke, stop hurting me like this. You promised." He whispered, pleadingly. "You swore to me you would never turn against me. You promised you would never look at me with those eyes." Sasuke sneered, throwing another punch to the man's gut.

"There's another thing. Thanks to you, my eyes are permanently this way." He tackled Naruto to the ground, not caring to notice that he had slammed his rival's head down hard on the cement roof, and began delivering blow after blow while he had the younger man pinned beneath him. In a quick show of superiority, he flung his hand to the side and held up the kunai that had been tossed aside, twirling the weapon thoughtfully between his fingers. Naruto remained motionless beneath him, staring at the dull metal, waiting for his rival to decide what to do.

In a flash, the kunai was swept down and pressed roughly against the soft warm skin of Naruto's neck. He closed his eyes to the pain, feeling the blood trickle down his throat and drip from the back of his neck onto the dusty ground he was pressed into. Sasuke leaned forward, his body weight pressing against the knife even further, and licked at the tears that were trailing down his friend's cheeks.

"Feel that pain?" He hissed, crushing his lips against Naruto's, biting and pushing against his lips until they were swollen and bleeding. He made sure the kiss was fierce and deep and was as painful as the knife digging into the tanned skin. "You don't even deserve to breathe the sa-"

"Kill me, then." Naruto interrupted. "End my life and rid the world of one more evil monster. Everything you said was right. I've killed thousands of people, and my existence is ruining this village. Maybe you did become the monster I was always afraid of, but I'm no better, am I?" he lifted his arms and wrapped his hands around the one that Sasuke was using to hold the kunai against his neck and pressed down harder.

The younger Uchiha took in a sharp breath and closed his eyes, ripping the blade up, slicing into the tips of Naruto's fingers, and threw it aside.

"Naruto, I…" He hesitated, seeing the defeated look in his friend's eyes. They were dull and lifeless, but he was not dead, yet. "I broke my promise…" He said, his voice cracking slightly. He too remembered the promise he had made when Naruto had finally confessed to being terrified of Sasuke in that way, but he had broke the promise. He lowered his own wounded hand to the wound he'd inflicted on his friend and never noticed when his whole body began to shake from shock. Not only had the curse seal drained him down to his last shred of chakra, but he felt as though he was waking from a nightmare, only to find his reality was far worse. He had allowed the curse seal to take over, not noticing it through the rage he felt, and when it had finally receded, it was too late and he was left to deal with the consequences.

His blood mingled with Naruto's for a moment before he pulled his hand away, sharply, and stumbled backwards off of his rival. For a few moments he just stared at the tanned man's body, which still had yet to move, until he couldn't bear to look any longer and he fled from the rooftop, ashamed of what he had become in his quest for revenge.

Naruto was left lying on the nearly destroyed cement top, staring at the clouds. As a bitter hot wind blew across his broken body, he lifted his torn fingers to the sky and wondered how it could look so blue when all he could see was the blood that was trickling down his arm, the pool beneath his head and the death that he had been denied.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke's mind was blank as he knocked out yet another sand ninja. He didn't take the time to catch his breath, and instead moved on to his next enemy, aiming to put his entire being into his battles, but his chakra limit should have been reached a few minutes earlier, and he was running on empty. His last battle had shown several mistakes he wouldn't normally have made, but instead of stopping to examine the problem, he pushed ahead further, stubborn about fixing it through experience, though deep down, he knew he was just doing it to rid himself of the pain he knew he would feel when he allowed himself to stop. He couldn't stop.

He didn't see when a Sound ninja came up behind him to aid his comrade, bringing the hilt of his katana down hard on the back of Sasuke's head, causing him to collapse to the floor in a heap, unconscious.

The last thought running through his mind before the darkness engulfed him was that Itachi had been right. He was weak, and until he could control his anger, he would always be weak.

Kakashi, who was fighting a few feet away, saw Sasuke go down out of the corner of his eye and raced towards his student to help. He was surprised to see the younger man go down so easily, but attributed it to the stress of the war and nothing more.

He used the metal plate on the back of his fingerless gloves to smack the attention of the two shinobi away from the unconscious genin lying in the dirt. He hunched over, ready for whatever attack they threw at him, and was disappointed when all they had was general ninja weapons and the mediocre bunshin. If they had been from Konoha, they would barely be genin, much less the jounin status they held. Again he wondered how Sasuke could have lost so quickly to these two, but shoved the question aside until they were dealt with.

He lowered his hitai-ate over his Sharingan eye, he hardly needed it with these two, and charged at them, using the speed he had built up throughout his years. They were startled by the speed, but tried to keep up, despite their odds. Obviously they hadn't been taught when the right time to turn tail and run was, and he was in no mood for a lesson. Drawing a double-sided kunai, he put his hands together in as quick skill, calling up a bunshin, and together they knocked the two out.

He looked around, but their area had been cleared, the rest of them either running from the sight of the ruthless copycat ninja, or because they had already heard of his reputation.

Grateful that he had gotten to Sasuke before anything happened to the younger man, he slung him over his shoulder and headed back to the centre of the village where the injured were being treated, and Sasuke would be safe enough to wake up and give him some answers.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

By the time Sasuke had made it to the hospital and admitted, Sand and Akatsuki had retreated, satisfied by the large dent they had created in Konohagakure's defence. Many were dead, and many still were missing or severely injured. It took a few hours for the ceasefire to register in the minds of the villagers and shinobi, and when it did, they finally started looking for loved ones.

Ino stood in front of what used to be her family's flower shop, tears streaming down her face. The flowers were unimportant to her, but the sight of her best friend frantically digging through the rubble caused her a great deal of pain. Because both Ino and her father, Inoshi, were needed to help protect the village, her mother had opted to help out as well, using her skills as a medical ninja at the hospital.

The Yamanaka family had left the shop to Haruno Yuri and her husband, Sakura's parents, knowing they were not a ninja family, and wanted to keep them out of harms way. They didn't think the battle would reach so far into the village.

Ino looked around her, noticing there were many other shops on the street they were on that had been destroyed in the attack, but people who were there said the Yamanaka's flower shop was the first to go down. Ino squeezed her eyes shut as her ears caught the broken sobs of her closest childhood friend, as she pulled back another burnt piece of wood. It was doubtful Sakura would find anyone alive in the place; it had been burnt to the ground. One man had kindly told Ino that the man and woman looking after it refused to leave their friend's shop, willing to protect it like they would their daughter. She kept her mouth shut, not knowing if Sakura was ready to hear such things just yet.

"Sakura-chan, please stop." She exclaimed, turning back to the charred remains. "You're only serving to get your hopes up. They didn't make it." She sniffled, and made her way into the wreckage to comfort her friend. When she finally reached the side of the other kunoichi, she found her crouched down low, hugging her knees. She stooped low as well and did the only thing she could, envelop her friend in a tight hug. "It'll be okay, Sakura-chan." She whispered, letting the girl cry on her shoulder. As far as she had heard, they were the only relatives in Konoha that Sakura had, the closest being a third cousin in Amegakure.

"Our job was to protect these people." Sakura hiccupped when her tears had stopped. "We failed the one duty we had."

"I know." She whispered, petting the pink hair of her best friend and sighed, knowing this was only the start of the horrors they were going to find.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

When Shikamaru had finally found his father, he was speechless to find the man weeping on Inoshi's shoulder. Both men were sitting on the bench near the gates, which had been sealed shut with ten Anbu guards patrolling until they could be absolutely sure the enemy was gone. He stayed back for a second, wondering if it really was his father that was with his team mate's father, but there were very few people who were as built up as Shikato and had that hairstyle. Inoshi looked up, tears prickling the corners of his eyes, and spotted his friend's son.

"Shikamaru." He exclaimed, patting Shikato on the shoulder to alert the man of his son's presence.

"Otousan?" Shikamaru asked, tentatively, unsure of the cause behind such a worrisome breakdown. The man stiffened at the voice, but refused to turn around. It took a glare from Inoshi to finally get him to respond to his son.

"Shikamaru, I…" But he didn't know what to say. The chuunin walked up to the two men, hesitant about what he knew he was about to hear. Inoshi cleared his throat and stood up, despite his friend's moan of protest.

"You two need to talk, Shikamaru-kun. It's about your mother." Shikamaru froze and lowered his gaze to the ground, frowning deeply.

"She died in the battle, didn't she?" Inoshi watched as Shikamaru's hands closed into fists, but otherwise he remained his aloof self, something his father had managed to break free of at the news about his wife. At first he had been surprised at his friend's break down, but he understood more than anyone. No matter how many times he had complained to the Yamanaka man, Shikato loved his wife dearly.

"I'm sorry." Inoshi whispered, and walked away, leaving father and son to each other.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Neji didn't know what he expected to find when he reached the main clan house, later on in the afternoon. The battle had been over for at least six hours, and still bodies were being recovered all across the village. He knew that Hinata had chosen to stay behind and help out Tsunade and Sakura in the hospitals, using her hands to heal rather than hurt. He knew she didn't particularly like healing with her chakra, but she told her cousin she wanted to be there in case Naruto showed up injured.

He had suffered three broken ribs, but he knew that he was one of the lucky ones and didn't complain when he visited Tsunade in the hospital, though he knew she had noticed his wounds. She just told him that she had given Hinata the rest of the night off as the rest of the patients were either healed as much as they could get until the morning, or they were the ones coming in, which were much more serious cases, and infrequent enough for Tsunade to handle each one personally.

Contrary to many other buildings in the village, all of the houses in the Hyuuga main house were completely fine, not a one had seen a hint of a battle aside from the training that the Hyuuga family did inside the family grounds. He looked around for a moment, wondering where his younger cousin would be, when he spotted her sitting on the front steps to the main mansion. He walked up to her calmly, giving her a small smile in greeting when she lifted her head.

"Neji-sama." She exclaimed softly.

"Tsunade-hime told me you had been given the rest of the evening off." She nodded, looking back to her hands, which were resting on top of her knees. Neji took the silent invitation and sat down beside her. "She also told me to tell you that Sasuke is doing fine, and should wake up shortly. She also said that the doctors were very happy to find a patient who would definitely survive the night." Hinata looked to him and nodded.

"Hanabi was admitted to the hospital too." She told her cousin. He turned to her sharply.

"What happened?" He asked, taking in how strangely calm she was. She had lost a lot of her shy nervousness over the last few months since her break-up with Naruto.

"Her and her team mates got caught in a fight between some of the upper class shinobi." Hinata exclaimed. "Tsunade-hime has high hopes that she'll be okay, but she lost the vision in her right eye… and part of it in her left eye from a poison attack. Otousan is staying with her tonight." Neji nodded.

"I wish her good health." He murmured. "But where is everyone else? These houses make this seem like a ghost town." He looked down one of the streets, only just noticing how empty the place really looked; as though they were the only two left in the entire village.

"There is no one else, Neji-sama." Hinata replied, kicking the dirt with one of her sandals.

"What do you mean?" Neji stood up and took a good look around. The streets were silent. He looked down to see Hinata staring at him with her soft white eyes.

"There's a couple of the children who are missing, but everyone else died in the battle. I came home and the gate had been left open. The houses were ransacked and everyone I found had their eyes either burned out or removed." Neji stood still for a moment, taking in the new meaning behind the silent streets. It horrified him that his innocent cousin had seen such a horrible thing, but she was too old to be considered innocent anymore.

"Everyone?" He replied, still unsure. She nodded solemnly, turning her attention back to her fingers. I matched everyone I found to the registry in the main house. A few ninja I know to have died on the battlefield or in the hospital, and the rest remained here. I think a couple of the children from the branch house went into hiding, but I can't be sure as each house had their own unique hiding spot. Everyone else, except you, was accounted for. Whoever came in here now has the secrets of the Byakugan, Neji-sama." He winced, sitting back down and giving her an awkward hug.

"I don't care about that." He whispered, kissing the top of his cousin's head. "I thank the fates you're still here."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Kiba considered himself one of the lucky ones. Him and Akamaru had managed to avoid the areas where the battles were so concentrated it was hard to tell enemy from ally, and he knew the stench of blood would throw his and his friend's noses out of whack, not to mention make him want to hurl. He could handle blood, he did it everyday, but the massacre he had avoided would have crossed his limits.

He'd found a spot a little bit closer to the hospital, and lay in wait for any of the ones who found themselves as lucky as Kiba, getting through the myriad of shinobi from Anbu right down to genin. He had considered himself the last defence between the Sand ninjas and the building where Tsunade was busily trying to do her best saving lives.

He was proud of his and Akamaru's work at achieving their goal. If they made it past Kiba, they didn't make it past his loyal dog. But when the battles had ceased, and he had finally realized he could go home and rest, he was lost. He didn't know if he should go home and sleep or check up on the rest of his friends. A little bit of whining from Akamaru made the decision for him and he headed out to find his friends to see how they were holding up.

He found Shino in another part of the forest, where the trees were spread out and light filtered in softly through the green leaves. The boy was directing two men and a young girl to collect something for him, when Kiba entered the semi-clearing. Shino took no notice of him for a few minutes, keeping his attention on his bugs, but Kiba didn't have to wait long to know what was going on. Body after body began to pile up so fast, Kiba thought he was going to be sick just looking at it, forget his nose. Akamaru whimpered at the sight and buried his head between his paws.

"Shino-kun…" He started, getting the man's attention.

"Kiba-kun, I cannot play games with you today." Kiba frowned for a moment, but the comment slid by fast.

"Is that…?" Shino looked back to the bodies and nodded slowly.

"My whole clan. The bugs are returning them to me." He exclaimed. Kiba choked for a moment before he finally had had enough and fled back into the village, his dog following just on his heels.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

When Lee had heard it, he didn't believe it. When he saw it, he couldn't believe it. But when Tsunade finally told him they needed to move the body to another room in order to make room for more patients, he found that he had no choice but to believe it.

"But… how could this happen?" He whispered more to himself than the healer at his side. Tsunade looked to him before closing her eyes at the confusion he expressed. It was always hard to say good-bye to a comrade or a soldier, but too many familiar faces had passed through her rooms, never to return to the land of the living.

"I can tell you the cause of death, if it will help you to know his final moments." She offered. He sighed, coughing to cover a sob, but nodded. He wanted to know everything. "He was stopped by this." She pointed to the leg that had been shattered. It now lay disfigured and discoloured, looking very little like the strong leg it once had been. "It looks like it was a sharp object that made him falter, but then it was hit repeatedly with something large and heavy. With his speed of no use to him, he was forced to rely on genjutsu, but it looks like he was tapped of his chakra before he could get to it, stopping his from using that technique of his you learned. After that he was hit here," she pointed to his chest where a large kunai once was lodged. "And that's when his heart stopped beating. Oxygen stopped making it to his brain and he died." She looked up to Lee, saddened by his tears, but surprised that he was smiling.

"They say he took out all three of the shinobi who had attacked him, even as he was dying." He exclaimed softly. "He really was in the spring of his youth." Tsunade smiled at the man's student and the pride that shone through despite the tragic pain of grief that she could feel coming off of him in waves. "That's how Gai-sensei would have wanted to be remembered." He added, turning from the room.

"Lee-san." Tsunade called before he left. He stopped in the doorway and looked back. "One of the shinobi who saw him just before he died told me something that Gai had asked to be passed on." Lee nodded, waiting to hear it. She smiled to herself before passing on the news. "He said, he was happy to die knowing he had defeated Kakashi in 451 battles, beating the number of times Kakashi beat him… by one." Rock Lee laughed at that, and wiped the tears from his eyes, even though he knew the tears would continue to fall.

(End of Chapter)

Well… how's that for four hours straight from start to finish? I was probably just in the perfect mood to write this… bored. The title of this chapter didn't strike me until the very end… when I realized that everyone in the end had a completely different way of dealing with their grief. In a way, I'm proud of the way Rock Lee came out. None of these reactions were written out before I typed them here. Everything is just… off-the-top-of-my-head. I hope I did these guys justice.

On a side note: I managed to create something of a calendar of events. I can accurately say that this chapter takes place on August 18th.

Yay for the eight people who remembered who I was!!

To Ulitheal: I hope this explained it a little better, and not forced you to go see the end of chapter 6 and the beginning of chapter 7.

To Ruby Love: How do I feel? To me it's a lot like writing down the events in a movie. I see the whole thing play out in my head, so if it's good, I cry at the parts your supposed to cry at and laugh when I'm supposed to. I actually almost cried when Lee was talking to Tsunade at the end here.

To Miekje: I'm glad that more people are starting to see this story reflect real life, and yet stay as true as possible to Kishimoto-sempai's characters. I don't know from experience what losing someone close to you feels like, but I imagine that it's different for everyone. Some people accept it and move on quickly, while others mourn for years. I imagine I would be one who moves on fast, but to each his own. I hope I conveyed that message clearly in the end of this chapter.


	60. Village Murderers

I'd say something, but I figure you've waited long enough, so go read.

Chapter Title: 60. Village Murderers

Kotetsu kicked a piece of splintered wood aside from his path and shook his head, scribbling more notes on his clipboard, before lifting the paper and drawing an X through lot number 3582 on his large map of Konohagakure's marketplace. Izumo was a little bit further down the street, doing the same thing, but with all the shops spared from the battle. Tsunade had asked them to go out and take inventory of all of the damages, from things with minor damages to things that had to be rebuilt entirely. He sighed, looking at his map. It had more Xs than not.

Because it was such a solemn time, Tsunade had actually suggested following them in their work, opting to talk to the villagers. He turned back and found her discussing possible financial aide the village would provide to those in need. He smiled at the sight of the older woman kneeling down before the couple's little girl, laughing affectionately with the child. Although he had been working for her for many years, it was still a sight to see the woman when she was taking her job seriously. It always had the effect of erasing any doubts he previously had about her ability to lead.

He turned ahead to the next house, hoping to catch up to his friend, who was half a dozen houses ahead of him. He silently wished that Izumo was the one lagging behind from having so many checkmarks to write down and not the other way around.

Before he could even look up to the house to check for damages, a young woman ran out of the building and grabbed his hand, causing the pen he was holding to clatter to the floor. He was startled for a moment before he frowned at the woman.

"What's the matter?" She looked behind him, where Tsunade was just finishing up with the family, and let go of his hands, opting to speak with the older woman instead. Kotetsu sighed, but was intrigued to learn the reason for the young girl's distress. It didn't look like it was a big emergency, but just in case, he waited behind to listen to the conversation.

"He's been there for three days now."

"Who has?" Tsunade responded, placing her hands on the woman's shoulders in an effort to calm the distressed villager. "Slow down and take a breath, then tell me who you're talking about."

"I don't know who he is, but he won't move, he won't eat and he won't talk."

"Is he an enemy?" The girl shook her head.

"He was from Leaf, but something seems wrong with him." Tsunade turned to Kotetsu and Izumo.

"Can you two give me the list of the missing shinobi?" Kotetsu nodded and flipped through a couple of pages.

"Could you tell me his rank, ma'am?" He asked politely.

"Genin." He nodded and flipped a couple more pages.

"The following genin are missing. Akimichi Chouji, Douma Soushi, Endo Tamako, Makabe Kazuki, Matsuda Ken, Sarutobi Konohamaru and his team mates, Moegi and Udon, and Shibuya Yuuri." He paused, double-checking his list. "Uchiha Sasuke was found and brought to the hospital a few days ago and Inuzuka Kiba was finally tracked down this morning, in the mountains." He crossed off the two names from his list. "That's it for genin." Tsunade frowned, going over the list in her head.

"Chouji and his team mates were supposed to have been placed on the other side of the village. Douma-kun was confirmed captured by Sunagakure, and Endo, Makabe, and Matsuda were all told to stay out of the fighting, their hitai-ate confiscated as punishment from their sensei the day before the war started. I'm not sure about Konohamaru, but I doubt that he would have strayed far from the other two."

"I suppose the only real way we're going to be able to confirm is going up." Izumo spoke up. "It could probably be any of them." Tsunade sighed and nodded. She had hoped to be able to continue surveying the damage and have one of the medical nin take a look at this problem, but there was no avoiding it.

"Was there any identifying marks on him?" She asked the girl.

"Not that I could see. He might have had a birthmark on his thigh, which I could see vaguely through one of the rips in his clothes, but I stayed as far from him as possible. I only got close enough to tell if he were alive or dead." The girl shuddered. "He was covered in a lot of blood, and he was just lying on the ground, staring at the sky. The whole roof is destroyed as well." Tsunade nodded and Kotetsu wrote down a couple of notes next to lot number 3583. "I'm pretty sure he's injured, cause of the amount of blood everywhere, though that could have been someone else's, but it's bugging me, and I was hoping someone could collect him before he dies up there… it'll be bad for business if word gets out." Tsunade snorted inwardly at the girl's ignorance. They had just made it through one of the nastiest battles since Orochimaru, and this girl was worrying about her shop's reputation. They went inside, and halfway up the first flight of stairs, Tsunade asked Izumo to give her a list of all the missing shinobi. He nodded and pulled out a thick scroll.

"Where do you want me to start?" He asked. She frowned and held out her hand.

"I can read it myself. No need shouting it out to the world. Some of these might be deserters and I'd like confirmation before I go around accusing anyone of anything. She opened up the scroll and began skimming through the list of names. About a quarter of the way through, she grabbed Izumo's pen and began scribbling out names, and muttering to herself.

"Hyuuga Hinata was with me the whole time." She frowned to herself, looking through the list of chuunin names. "Uzumaki?" She asked, looking up to Kotetsu who was now beside her on the stairs; Izumo had gone ahead and was talking to the young girl about the building she was leading them through.

"What?"

"I didn't know Uzumaki Naruto was on this list." Kotetsu thought for a moment before nodding.

"Someone confirmed seeing him near where Kakashi was fighting a few days ago, but he disappeared. We think Sasuke may have seen him, but he has yet to gain consciousness, so we don't know where he is."

"When I looked at Sasuke, he had been completely drained of chakra, meaning he must have been with his brother. If Naruto was near, Itachi might have already gotten his hands on him." She cursed under her breath. "It's no use. We'll just have to wait until Sasuke wakes up from his coma to get our answers."

"But I thought you said it could take weeks before he recovers enough…" She sighed at Kotetsu's observation.

"There's nothing we can do until someone tells us where he is, whether it be Sasuke, Akatsuki or Naruto himself." Kotetsu nodded and they pushed through the door onto the roof. Izumo and the young girl were ahead of them, but they couldn't see anybody, and the damage to the building was minimal.

"Are you sure there was a shinobi here?" Izumo asked, sceptically. The girl nodded pointing to the roof behind them, nearly six feet lower, but still attached. She went over and climbed down onto the second roof, using the small ladder that was attached to the back of the stone structure that led back into the building. They followed her, going to the ledge and gasping at the damage.

Corners had been smashed clear off, and there was blood everywhere, in all different stages of drying. There were also a couple of wires that had fallen from the next building over that were still sparking and hissing angrily. And in the middle of it lay the shinobi, staring at the clouds with glazed eyes. Tsunade stood amidst the damage for a moment, trying to catch her breath as they watched the calm rising and falling of the young man's chest.

"Naruto!" She exclaimed, jumping down the six feet rather than taking the rickety ladder, running to the fallen man's side, though to her he was still nothing but a child. He didn't move at the sound of her voice, nor did he make any indication, voice or otherwise, that he had even heard her cry. Izumo and Kotetsu made their way down the ladder to follow behind, the girl forgotten.

"What the hell happened here?" Izumo muttered to his friend, but neither had any answers.

Tsunade knelt down beside the blonde's body, raising his head to rest in her lap. His eyes were still foggy and they focused on nothing but thin air, but he wasn't dead. His breaths were coming, fairly normal, and any external wounds he might have had seemed to have all closed up, leaving little to no marks, showing that his other half, at least, was doing it's job in keeping him alive. However, there was no mistaking that most of the blood surrounding him was no one's but his, and the still wet puddle beneath his head spoke volumes of the trauma he'd just healed from.

"Are you okay, Naruto?" She asked, shaking him a little bit, but he didn't respond. "Stop acting like a spoiled brat and answer me!" She yelled, shaking him a little harder, which was a lot considering her strength.

"Tsunade-sama, you might hurt him." Kotetsu spoke up, taking a step forward, his hand raised as though to stop her, but they both knew it was an empty gesture. "Maybe we should get him to the hospital to look over his injuries." The Hokage sent him a glare and shoved back one of Naruto's black sleeves, revealing fresh, tanned skin, despite the story the shredded cloth told. There was virtually no evidence of him even being near a fight, though his surroundings made that very hard to believe.

"I wonder who he was fighting up here." Izumo spoke up, surveying the damage. Tsunade nodded gravely, giving up on her battle to wake the young man.

"It might not have even been him. There were reports of Itachi in the area, so I doubt Naruto would still be here if he had found Itachi. It might have just been a battle between Naruto and someone else after Itachi had passed. Kakashi-san told me Uchiha-san might have met with his brother, explaining why his chakra levels were so low. This damage could have nothing to do with him." Tsunade sighed for the hundredth time that day, and stood up. "I'll give him a quick check to make sure everything is okay. If he stays like this, we may have to check him in to the hospital for further analysis, but as far as I can see, it's nothing more than shock." Izumo and Kotetsu gave her a disbelieving look and she sighed, continuing with her check up. Naruto didn't even move.

"You know, I think we can handle things from here." Izumo said to the girl, smiling politely. "Thank you for letting us know that he was here." The girl nodded and made her way back to the ladder, to return to her normal life.

A minute later, Kotetsu sighed and placed a hand on the Hokage's shoulder. He had seen enough, and knew if he didn't say anything the older woman's judgement would be clouded by her emotions.

"Hokage-sama, he hasn't moved at all since we found him." She paused in the middle of checking his pulse. "And we still have more than half of the village to finish. He's not fit to return home like this, and Haruno-san has started working again. She can take care of him; it will give her something to hold onto after the loss of her family." Tsunade closed her eyes and nodded solemnly. He was right. There wasn't much she could to for Naruto on the rooftop, and if he was suffering any kind of psychological stress, he needed to be treated properly.

"Okay, let's move him to Sakura's ward." She exclaimed, standing up. She looked down to the motionless blonde and her face grew grave. "Naruto, we're going to take you to the hospital." She didn't expect him to turn his face to her and nod.

"The village is crying." He whispered to her. "The village is dying."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sakura stood in the doorway, watching Sasuke sleep peacefully. He'd finally come out of his coma, weeks earlier than his doctors had predicted, but still lacking a lot of his energy, and having little to no chakra control at all. It was nearly two weeks since Akatsuki and Sunagakure had backed off, and the pink-haired girl had reluctantly gone back to her work, although she stayed with the less severe patients, not wishing to be reminded of her parents anytime soon. Tsunade understood her choice, and respected it enough to allow her schedule to move around the major surgeries and keep her out of the emergency ward.

She knew that her other team mate had been brought in, but nothing about the details of his visit as he'd been moved constantly as a result of angry villagers. Patients refused to be anywhere near him, and anytime his location was leaked out, his windows were smashed with stones, and sticks were thrown in the windows in hopes that they would hit their mark. Finally Tsunade became so irritated that she made a public announcement, claiming that anyone caught performing acts of violence or discrimination against the young man would face criminal charges by the police and that she would make sure of it. The attacks came less frequently, but he was still the target of a lot of anger on the part of the village.

When Sasuke had awoken, only that morning, the first thing he asked for was Naruto. He wouldn't tell any of his nurses the reasoning only that it was important that he find the blonde. The nurses were forbidden to tell Sasuke anything about his friend, in case he had some part in putting the young man in the hospital in the first place. At first, he became quite irritable, refusing to speak with anyone, but eventually he became less and less sullen, and more withdrawn, ignoring his visitors completely.

"Why?" She asked suddenly, as though she were speaking to the boy, but he made no movement to say that he was even conscious, much less that he heard her query.

"There are probably a million different answers to that question, so you're going to have to be a little more specific." A voice sounded from behind Sakura and she turned around, startled.

"Kakashi-sensei." She nodded politely at him. He did the same to her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, knowing they both needed it for the moment. To them, it was as though their worlds had fallen apart.

"So, why what?" He replied, turning his gaze back to the young man in the bed. She looked back as well and sighed. To her, there wasn't just one 'why' question that she wanted answered, there were dozens.

"Why does he want to see Naruto so desperately?" She said. "Why is he hiding the truth about what happened on that roof? Why won't he talk to us? Why do I think he knows exactly what's wrong with Naruto?"

"Why do I feel like he's the source and cure for Naruto's pain?" Kakashi added. Sakura looked to him and nodded solemnly.

"Has there been any change in his behaviour since I left?"

"He's the same. The doctor came in to look at him and said that there's nothing wrong with him physically. He's doing this to himself. He's keeping himself like this."

"Has he said anything new?"

"He said he hated his room. That he wanted to be back on that roof so he could stare at the clouds like Shikamaru loved to do." Sakura winced. She had heard about the loss of his mother through Ino, who insisted on visiting her everyday to make sure she was doing okay. Apparently, he was doing fine, but his father was taking it very badly. Shikamaru had resorted to staying at home to take care of his father, leaving his shinobi duties to some of the other chuunin.

"Has he said anything about what happened?" Kakashi shook his head firmly.

"No. Whenever someone brings up what happened on the roof, he starts to talk about the village dying, and something about nightmares and a promise."

"What did he mean by that?" Kakashi shrugged.

"I know." Sasuke muttered behind her. They both turned back to Sasuke's room, seeing him rising from the bed, slipping his feet into the slippers by the bedside.

"Sasuke?" Kakashi started, moving forward quickly to stop him. "You can't leave this room, you're still injured. The doctors didn't even think you would be out of your coma this early, much less have the ability to go anywhere." He grabbed Sasuke's shoulder, but was met with the steady gaze of the still Sharingan.

"You can't stop me."

"Sasuke, please don't hurt yourself. It will only harm yourself and those who care about you." He narrowed his eyes at her and ignored her pleas.

"Where is he?" He demanded, turning to Kakashi for answers. From his face, it was uncertain just how much of their conversation he really heard.

"You can't see him like this, Sasuke." Kakashi avoided the question. "He's in very bad shape, there's nothing you can do for him, until you get better."

"What do you know about what happened to Naruto?" Sakura asked timidly, knowing this was the information Tsunade was searching for. "Were you there? Did you see what did this to him?"

"I let it happen." Sasuke muttered, looking away. "I did it to him. I don't expect forgiveness, nor do I ever want it, but I need to fix it."

"Do you think that something like that can just be fixed?" Tsunade growled from to doorway. "That Naruto is just another plaything for you that you can just use and abuse and expect crazy glue to put back together again for the next time? He's not a doll. He's a human being who's been betrayed one too many times. I don't know what the hell you did, but you will not go anywhere near him." Everything was quiet for a moment before Sasuke replied to her outburst.

"I thought I was in control." He said. "I thought with Orochimaru gone I was okay. I thought that this would be the time I actually killed my brother. Instead, I killed him."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Do you know what happened?" Tsunade looked up from the pile of papers on her desk to the old man standing in the door of her office. She shook her head.

"I know it might have been something Sasuke did to him, but that could also be his guilt talking. I think it was a culmination of things; the villager's hatred of him has gone too far, then Iruka's death, then Sasuke's betrayal. But, I don't know how to make things like this better. All I know how to do in these situations is run off to the nearest casino and shove quarters into a plinko machine and get raving drunk. I'm not suited for dealing with disasters like these. How do I save the village? Naruto may be having problems, but he's right. The village is dying." Jiraiya nodded gravely.

"You were chosen for a reason." He replied, moving closer and shoving a few papers out of his way so he could sit on one corner of her desk. "Do you still think that Naruto has the ability to rise above these problems to become your successor?"

"I don't know."

"Yes or no, Tsunade-baa-chan." She smiled at the attachment to her name.

"You've spent too much time training him. Yes, I still think he's the future of this village."

"That faith is the same faith that the third had in you. He knew that you and I would have the perseverance to last through tough times like these, no matter what conditions were like. He believed in us. You just have to as well." She kept quiet, and for a moment, Jiraiya thought she was going to go back to her work, but she looked up at him with a troubled look in her eyes.

"You know about what the village is saying about this whole war, right?" He gave her a confused stare. "They blame him for this attack. They're saying that if he had been killed a long time ago, they wouldn't be suffering today. They're blaming everything on him."

"I heard some of that; just rumours on the streets. Can you blame them? Nearly half of the village's fighters were killed, and so many people have lost loved ones. They're just looking for a scapegoat and Naruto is an easy target."

"I heard nurses muttering under their breaths about the audacity of him even being in the same building as them. Doctors refuse to treat him; I'm surprised he's even still alive. Jiraiya, these people want him dead. They think that by either killing him, or handing him over to Akatsuki that their suffering will end."

"There's nothing you can do for him right now. There's no way for you to change their minds right now. You just have to protect him for the moment, and allow him the chance to change their minds in his own time. He will do it, you know." Jiraiya smiled positively, though his eyes betrayed the doubt in his own words. "He's got to." Tsunade shook her head, pushing her chair out from the desk and standing to look out the window.

"I'm not sure if he'll even survive through this war." She muttered, frowning at the blue sky, but decided to change the subject. How has Sasuke been doing?" She asked, looking behind her to see that her old friend was still sitting on the edge of her desk.

"Not too good." He sighed. "He's getting even more agitated. He's been fighting against anyone who comes near him, screaming to be released so he can go to Naruto. If he weren't under heavy sedation already, I would suggest it, but he's still pretty violent. I'm surprised he hasn't injured anyone yet. Kakashi's taken on the duty of guarding him; not letting anyone near him for their own safety." Tsunade sighed, something she'd been doing a lot of since the beginning of the war.

"Has he told anyone what he did to Naruto, yet?" Jiraiya shook his head, picking up one of the unsigned documents from her desk and skimming through it. "He says he won't speak to anyone about it until he sees Naruto."

"Why are today's youth so stubborn?" Jiraiya chuckled, despite the graveness of the situation.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Shikamaru glanced outside the kitchen window wistfully, wishing he could do anything other than what he was doing. He'd always wondered what it would be like to have the carefree life of the birds who were always dancing, it seemed, among the clouds he was always staring at. It was something he never even told Chouji about. Sure, the cloud shapes interested him and kept his mind calm, but he'd always wanted to live the life of the birds and be free of the chains of such an obviously painful existence. He never wanted to be a bird more than at that moment.

Resignedly, he tore his gaze from the brilliant blue sky and returned his attention to his work. His father was no longer returning home at his usual times, and there was no longer anyone to make sure the young man was fed each night. He continued slicing the crab meat into strips for his sushi, not bothering to look up at each noise the door made.

He wasn't stupid, by any means. He knew the smell of alcohol, and his father's efforts to cover up his drunkenness with silence didn't stop him from noticing the wobble in his step every time he came home at two and three in the morning were wasted on the younger Nara. Shikamaru understood these things better than most people would have thought, even counting his IQ, as he wanted to drown out the pain of losing the most important woman in his life, too, but someone needed to be the rock for his family, and he knew that the his role had been decided for him before he even had the option. He had a constant ache in his chest from the loss of his mother, but being strong for his father was helping him get through it and he knew that when his father finally learned how to deal with his pain on his own, he would appreciate what the young Nara had done.

A few minutes earlier, Shikamaru had finished his father's meal for the night, ready to eat whenever the older man decided to stumble home. Under normal circumstances he might have been a little bit worried about what his father was doing in the bars, but he knew that Inoshi and Choumaru were looking after their team mate, and there was no one else he would trust his father with. Ino's father especially, looked after Shikato, even into the early hours of the morning when everyone else in the village was fast asleep. Both Naras realised that it was next to impossible to get rid of the blonde man, no matter what Shikato tried to pull on his old friend.

Shikamaru winced when he narrowly avoided slicing his finger off. His thoughts were distracting him from his… distraction. He sighed and glanced back to the window, once more wishing he was a bird. Birds never had to worry about keeping their fathers from suicidal thoughts. Birds didn't have to think about war. Birds didn't have to worry about how to keep their jobs and take care of their only remaining family at the same time. Birds just didn't have to worry.

"I wish I was a bird." He whispered wistfully, returning his thoughts to his task.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Kakashi wiped the fog from the mirror in his bathroom, peering at his eyes in the reflection he'd cleared. No one wanted to admit it out loud, but the village was truly crumbling, just like Naruto was saying. It was only a matter of time before Itachi and his allies came back to finish what they started. Kakashi turned away from his eyes in the mirror and cast his gaze downward to see his knuckles turning white from his tightly clenched fists. He unclenched them, once he realised what he was doing, and wiped the excess moisture off on the towel wrapped around his waist.

It was Iruka's.

He ignored that fact and left the bathroom, going to his closed to pull out a clean uniform. Slipping into his clothing quickly, he headed down to his lobby where one of the women who lived just down the hall from him wished him the best for the day and gave him her condolences for the loss of his friend. He curtly told her that many others had lost their lives in the battle, not just Iruka and walked out of the apartment building without so much as a nod goodbye. He knew it was a rude thing to do, but he couldn't find it in himself to remain in the woman's presence and allow himself the chance to think about what had happened.

"Kakashi-sensei!" He turned to find Sakura walking towards him, giving him a slight wave. "Good morning!" He nodded politely and waited for her to come closer. She stopped in front of him and gave him an evaluating glance, staring straight into his one visible eye.

"How are you today, Sakura-san?" He asked. She smiled tiredly and shrugged.

"At least I know I'm not the only one avoiding my problems." She responded, a desperate look coming across her features. "We'll just have to move on and make ourselves as busy as we can, right?" He nodded in agreement, though something inside of him told him he should be pretending like he didn't know what she was talking about. She was smart, though, and he didn't feel like lying to her. Not that he felt any more inclined to speak to her about it either.

"I'm going to Tsunade's office to see if I can get a mission or two." He explained, pointing in the direction of the old woman's offices. "Would you like to maybe get a drink or breakfast?"

"No, thank you." She answered, offering him another weak smile. "I've eaten already, but Tsunade's not in her offices today. She told me that she was going to be in surgery all day so anyone looking for missions was to talk to Jiraiya, or assign themselves to a volunteer mission. I tried that too." He nodded, thinking about something for a moment.

"Well, then do you know where I might find Jiraiya?" She nodded and pointed towards the onsen, near the foot of the Hokage monument.

"He said he was doing research." Kakashi nodded and walked briskly past her wishing her a good day. Just as he was passing beside her he caught the sound of her stomach rumbling, but ignored it, knowing why she had blown him off.

They might have both been hungry, but they had no appetite for food.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"What did you do to him, Sasuke?"

"That's none of your fucking business." Sasuke replied stiffly, calming down slightly at the mention of his friend's name.

"I think it is." Kakashi replied, the edginess evident in his voice. He'd gone to see Jiraiya, and was told to find out what Sasuke's secret was. "He's locked himself in his head, and everyone else out. You're the only one who could possibly get through to him, but no one will allow you anywhere near him unless you tell someone what happened up there." Sasuke remained quiet for a moment and it was obvious that he was trying to quell the shaking his body was experiencing since they had forcefully put the Sharingan glasses on him that morning.

"Do you… remember those nightmares he had on that one mission when we were about thirteen or fourteen?" He asked softly. Kakashi nodded, but the movement was wasted on Sasuke. He continued, regardless. "Well…" He trailed off, unsure of how exactly to word everything, but Kakashi did it for him.

"You didn't…"

"I did." Sasuke nodded. "I attacked him. I blamed him for everything, my broken life, Iruka's death," he didn't notice Kakashi's flinching at the dead man's name, "even the war. But it wasn't really me speaking, it was the curse."

"How can you say that? The words were your own, fuelled only by your rage."

"No! I wouldn't do that to him by choice."

"How do you know?" Kakashi pressed, playing the devil's advocate. "People do a lot of weird things when they're angry or pressured."

"What do you want me to say to you?" Sasuke spat out angrily. "The curse took a hold of me. It made me say things I've never even thought of to the one person I need. I made a promise to him never to let the curse turn me against him, and I broke it."

"Does he really mean that much to you?" Kakashi sighed, suddenly feeling very tired. Sasuke nodded, and remained silent. "He won't always be there, and he might not know how you feel." Sasuke was instantly reminded of Kakashi's loss and he muttered an apology, which the silver-haired man brushed aside with a casual shrug of his shoulders. "You can't take his presence for granted. I'll talk to Tsunade about letting you out." He quickly gave his student a once over, checking out all of the major wounds. Most of the minor ones had healed over the last week and a half, but the major ones were still quite visible, and two were still bleeding, one deep gash on his arm and one along the length of his back. Both had needed stitches.

"The Hokage's right outside." Sasuke pointed out, nodding in the direction of the door. Kakashi looked up through the small window of the door to see Tsunade talking to a few of the nurses who were looking after Sasuke's health.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

When Naruto was finally released from the hospital, Tsunade walked with him home, purposely leading him along the back roads to avoid the masses of villagers who wanted nothing more than to throw old and mouldy fruit at him. Luckily they managed to make it home without much of a hassle, but still Tsunade couldn't get a word out of her young friend. She tried all kinds of conversations until finally she became fed up with talking to a wall. He'd become well enough that he would nod or shake his head to yes or no questions, but he wouldn't say anything more than what he'd already mentioned about the village dying. Eventually she stood up and excused herself, telling Naruto she would go out and get him some more fruits and other food so he wouldn't starve while he was home.

None of this phased Naruto in the least, and he returned to his spot on the couch for twenty minutes after locking the door behind the woman. When she came back, she had knocked softly on his door, telling him that she had his fruit, but he'd ignored her words, waiting for another half an hour until she gave up getting back inside the apartment and told him goodbye. He uncurled himself slowly, stretching out the kinks in his muscles and went to the door. Sliding the bolt out of the way, he opened his door and reached down to pick up the small bags of fruit, not registering the feet of the person standing right in front of him until he stood back up.

The first thing he saw was those familiar red eyes.

"Sasuke!" He gasped, frightened.

The bags fell to the floor and Naruto tried to slam the door shut, but Sasuke was fast, and already had his foot in the door to stop it. When he realized he wasn't going to get the door shut, he began to move away from the door, crawling away on his hands and feet, not daring to turn his back on the door.

"Please leave me alone." He begged, his eyes watching Sasuke's every move, as the older man walked unhurriedly into the room. "Go away; stop hurting me." Sasuke shot him a look of devastation, but shook his head, shutting the door behind him and crouching low so he was eye level with his terrified friend.

"I'm so sorry, Naruto." He held out his hand, palm up and took a small step forward, wincing when the action caused Naruto to scoot further away from him in fear. "I won't hurt you." He whispered.

"LIAR!" Naruto screamed, slapping the proffered hand away. "I'll never believe you again! You said that before, but you did!" He shivered, reminding himself of the events on the rooftop, but Sasuke had stopped moving closer for the moment. "I let you in; I trusted you." Sasuke looked at his feet in shame, knowing everything Naruto was saying was right. "Why should I ever believe anything you ever say again?"

"It wasn't me." Sasuke replied softly, looking up. He rubbed his shoulder, slightly as if there was some invisible ache there. "It was the curse talking. I would never intentionally hurt you. I stood by you when the fox demon was trying to break the seal, and when you lost your body and no one else believed you could survive." He shifted closer, momentarily ignoring Naruto's protesting. "I don't care if you don't believe me, and I don't care if you hate me for the rest of your life, but please don't shut me out this way." He quickly moved forward, grabbing Naruto around the shoulders, stifling some of the blonde man's struggling.

"Let me go!" Naruto screamed, and was reminded that if his neighbours cared, he might have been helped. He fought against Sasuke's grip on his arms, but no matter what he did Sasuke's strength was superior to his own. "No, no, no…" He whispered to himself, as Sasuke began to rock him gently back and forth, his thumbs drawing circles on the younger man's back. He took in a deep shuddering breath when he felt this rival's tears begin to stain his shirt, as well as the long tan fingers slowly start to curl themselves around his clothing, keeping him in place.

"Please believe me." He whispered.

"I do."

"I'd go crazy if I didn't have you." Sasuke whispered, his words muffled in the soft strands of gold that he'd pressed his face into. There was a brief silence and he almost thought the words hadn't been spoken at all.

"I know."

"They told me you were practically comatose when you were brought in." Sasuke shifted his arms a little bit so that they could both be comfortable, even though things were far from settled between the two of them. "You wouldn't speak more than two sentenced to anyone. What changed?"

"I deserved it." Came the reply. "There was this man who snuck through the guards on my door just as I was about to leave. Tsunade yelled at him to leave, but he just kept yelling at me. He told me I deserved the pain and that I was disgracing the village by not accepting it."

"That's a load of bullshit." Sasuke spat. "You did nothing wrong."

"The village is dying and I'm the one killing it. I may not have held the kunai to the throats of every single person who died in that battle, but I am the reason they died. My existence killed them."

(End of Chapter)

I still hate this chapter, but I went back and fixed some things, so it's not as bad as it once was. I added a few scenes and took out some others… Sorry for keeping you waiting for so long… exams and birthdays etc. and now I've got auditions and serious schoolwork.. blah… I hope that by making this extra long, it will make up slightly for it being really, really late.

Oh… and btw, I actually already have the next chapter typed up and ready to go… it's actually been ready for… a year and a couple months. Yeah, the next chapter was originally supposed to be the very first chapter of this story. The only changes made to it was changing the Third Hokage into the Fifth, Lee in this story was originally Ino, and I decided to spare you people who've waited so patiently and reveal the truth behind Naruto's Room of the Dead. Yes, that's right, Folks. I've finally decided to reveal the big secret. **_EXPECT THENEXTCHAPTER IN THE NEXT WEEK AND A HALF._**

To Glass Kitsune: Thank you for your observation of the poor quality of the chapter. I'm going to go over it this weekend (if I have time) and revise it so it's closer to standard.

To truefightingwolf: Naruto and the Kyuubi are one. Naruto cannot stop the healing process because it's a part of himself that he can't turn off. Like breathing.

To QianYun: I think it was your mention of Sasuke and Naruto's presence being repetitive that caused me to want to do this chapter in this way. I was trying to avoid their point of view throughout the chapter until it became absolutely necessary. I think you were right about the chapter being of crappiness, so I'm going to redo it… this is why I like in-depth reviews. They tell me where I screw up and I am able to make things better.

To Frithjof: Thank you for such a lovely review. I'm sorry about your mother, even though I know my apology does nothing for you. I looked at those scenes as a challenge. I wanted to show that I knew there was many different ways of dealing with grief, and I wanted to see if I could accurately portray all those different ways of dealing with such a tragic loss. Still thinking about the NejiShika (don't want to make the whole village gay…).

To Generally Maz: Your review had me laughing for a long time. I would love to see someone do a take on those two too. I couldn't imagine Sasuke stoned…

To Momochi Zabuza: Yay! I'm a Hidden Mist shinobi! Haku-in-training!

YAY! TONFA! Yes, TONFA The Original Naruto Fanfiction Archives is holding a Naruto Fanfiction Awards thingy. They've got everything from Romance to Parody to Action/Adventure. Yes, this story is nominated in the A/A section, but that's not what this is here for. GO VOTE! It doesn't have to be for me or my two stories, it could be for one of the other great stories that are up for awards. Anyways… yay! I still can't believe I even got nominated for an award…

**GO VOTE!**


	61. Good People

Because I decided to smush two chapters together for the previous post, I finally figured out that I was missing a few key elements that were needed for the next part to make complete sense, so what I'm going to do is put those missing things into this chapter. Sorry for taking so long!

Too bad about the Naruto Fanfiction Awards… it seems they hate me now. (hee hee). I'm losing by something like twenty-five votes or something. Ah well… I stopped caring about it a while back. If people don't like the story, then there's nothing I can do about it, ne?

CHAPTER!

Chapter Title: 61. Good People

Kakashi had finally found himself something permanent to do for the next couple of days, as the village rebuilt itself, and it was keeping him fairly occupied. From five in the morning he had an hour of patrolling the marketplace, from six to eleven he took over some of the classes at the academy, focusing mainly on teaching the younger generation about the various uses for weapons and advancing them through the basic jutsu so they could possibly graduate sooner and fight for the village. He was only slightly ashamed about forcing children so young to fight, but he knew that if it had the possibility of saving even one more life, he would sacrifice anything. After eleven, he allowed himself fifteen minutes for a lunch and then he went on another patrol around the entire border of Konohagakure, even going to far as to make sure there wasn't any enemies hiding in the mountains. After that many ninja would be tired and turn in for the evening, but Kakashi refused to relax and took on some advanced classes at the academy for genin and chuunin students who wished to become stronger faster than the rest. These classes ended at two in the morning, giving him two and a half hours of restless sleep before he had to be awake and patrolling again.

He had no life and that was the way he needed it to be. He couldn't allow himself the chance to stop and think or else he would think about things that could limit his ability to be an efficient ninja.

Kakashi was so busy trying to be better for the village that he failed to see what he was doing to his body. Fifteen minutes was far from enough time spent on one meal a day, and everyone else was too busy repairing their own lives to see that, not just Kakashi, but other ninja around the village were beginning to slowly kill themselves by pushing too hard. They were too busy trying to hide the effects of the war that they didn't even notice them to begin with. No one really noticed the great big cloud of guilt that hung, low and dark, over the heads of most of the ninja who had fought in the recent battle.

Kakashi looked up from his feet to see the many people beginning to fill the marketplace and smiled at one woman who passed him with her child, even though they couldn't see it. His shift nearly finished, Kakashi began heading to the sign out spot when he heard a small scuffle erupt around the corner. From the voices he could tell they were merely village children, but a disturbance was a disturbance.

He walked closer to the corner where he could hear the voices and eventually was able to make out what they were yelling about.

"You don't know what you're talking about! My dad died fighting for Konohagakure, bastards."

"What a joke! Everyone knows your father never wanted to be a ninja, he died running away. He was a traitor until the day he died." Kakashi frowned, turning the corner to find a young boy surrounded by a handful of older children.

"He was not!" The boy screamed, pulling out a kunai that obviously didn't belong to him. He was much too young to be a genin already. "My dad loved this village. He was great, and I won't let you say he was anything but that!" He lunged at the closest boy, aiming to strike the kid's arm, but Kakashi grabbed the weapon before the blade could hit its mark.

"This kunai is to be used on enemies, not each other." He exclaimed, making sure all the children could tell how displeased he was. "If you children have nothing better to do than torment each other, you don't deserve to talk of those who died trying to protect your lives." They all lowered their eyes to the ground, ashamed over their petty fighting.

"Kakashi-sensei, my father was a good person, wasn't he?" The child looked up at him, dropping the kunai to the dusty ground.

"Every ninja who fights to protect those they love are good people." He replied, frowning deeply.

"So Iruka-sensei was a good person?" Another child piped up. Kakashi flinched at the name and turned around to face the young girl who had asked the question. He nodded.

"There's no doubt that he was a good person." He answered, sighing softly. "He fought for this village because he loved everything in it."

"He fought for you." The oldest of the group spoke up, a young boy who had been standing on the sidelines. "He loved this village and he loved you. It's a good way to die, Kakashi-sensei. Loving with your whole heart." Kakashi gave the boy an odd look, wondering where all of this was coming from but shrugged it off.

"I have classes to get to now, don't fight anymore." He exclaimed, turning from the alleyway.

"You shouldn't work yourself too hard, Kakashi-sensei." The boy replied, knowing the silver-haired jounin wasn't going to stop at his words. "If you don't take the time to grieve, your body will make you take the time." Kakashi continued to walk on, almost as though he hadn't heard the child's words, though both teacher and young boy knew that he had.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"They're starting to rebuild the village." Ino told her team mate, sitting on a chair at the kitchen table, watching her friend work away. She rested her chin on the palm of her hand, her elbow resting on the hardwood table. Shikamaru didn't even turn around at her announcement He merely nodded his head and continued to work, cooking up a small lunch for him and his friend before they got to work on the other household chores.

Ino had come over while his father was out and forced him to allow her to help him clean up the house and make some food for his father's return home. He grudgingly agreed to her help, but only because she refused to leave until he agreed to her help.

He set the small bento lunch in front of her and sat down beside her with a sigh. His entire body slumped into the chair and he nearly hit his head on the wood table as his head fell forward.

"You know, you should get some sleep." She poked his side. "Pushing yourself to the limits like this is going to kill you." He refused to look at her, and just shrugged.

"If I don't do it…" He trailed off, both of them knowing what he meant.

"You shouldn't allow your father to act this way. He'll drink himself to death."

"Stop being such a bother." He snapped. "He just lost his wife. I just lost my mother. You can't expect me to take things the same way I used to." She remained quiet for a moment at his outburst. "I'm just letting him handle his grief in his own way. You can't tell someone how to deal with this kind of loss. So, while he's incapacitated, I have to do my best to keep things here running. He'll come back eventually."

"You don't know that." Ino whispered. Shikamaru glanced out the window and sighed.

"But I do." He replied. She turned to see what he was staring at, but saw nothing but a cloud-less sky. "We're the same. When he's ready he'll, come back and fight, and life will move on." He picked up his chopsticks and began eating, signalling the end of the conversation. Ino followed suit and they ate their lunch in silence.

Just as Shikamaru rose to put their dishes into the sink, the blonde girl shot out her hand to grab his forearm. He stopped, but didn't turn to her. She accepted his response, but still frowned because of it.

"You aren't alone in the world, Shikamaru." She gave his arm a slight squeeze for support.

"Maybe."

When they had finished cleaning the house and doing the laundry, Shikamaru was completely wiped out and welcomed Ino's offer to make dinner for him and his father, who was due to arrive home any second.

He collapsed on the couch in the living room, content to close his eyes and get some rest, even if it was only for a moment. It only took Ino a few minutes to get the rice into the rice cooker and the various seafood prepared. Allowing the delicious scents of spices and cooking meat wash over him, he steadied his breathing and allowed his mind to slow down and take a break.

"You're not sleeping, are you?" Ino called from the kitchen. He shook his head and opened his eyes, breathing out a sigh.

"No, I'm awake."

"This will be finished in a few minutes, is there anything else that needs work?" She popped her head around the corner, looking hopeful. Shikamaru looked up, but shook his head.

"You should go home. I'm not the only one who's lost someone. Sakura needs you much more than I do, you know." He narrowed his eyes at her. "I just need to be alone for a little while. I can handle myself for a long while."

"Are you sure?" She looked worried, but he shook his head again.

"I know my limits. Sakura needs you." Ino nodded and when she had finished cooking, she hung up the small apron and left.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Hinata sighed when she watched her cousin begin making breakfast for them. He'd been overly helpful towards her, but he refused to say more than three words at a time to her. She knew it was because he felt pity towards her, and that thought was beginning to grate on her nerves. He was being just a little too nice to her, just a little too soft on her when they trained in the backyard together. He was acting like she was going to break if he touched her the wrong way, or said the wrong thing in her presence.

"Neji, do you think we can go out for dinner instead tonight?" She spoke up, coming up behind him and placing her hand over his on the water tap; he'd been filling up the pot with water when she interrupted him. He looked up to her and thought about the request for a moment, keeping his gaze locked with hers.

"Of course, Hinata-san." He replied, placing the pot in the sink and shutting off the water. He wiped his hands on his pants and was about to take off the apron he'd been wearing when Hinata stopped him again with her hand.

"Why?" She asked. Neji gave her a confused look, not knowing what she was asking.

"Why what?"

"Why are you doing this?"

"You asked to go out for dinner tonight." He replied, not understanding her question. "Do you not want to go out?" She shook her head, frowning.

"Why do you treat me like a porcelain doll?" She replied. "I know it's rude of me to say this, but I don't like being treated in this way."

"I apologize Hinata-san." Neji apologized, lowering his eyes.

"Just call me Hinata. We're friends." Neji blinked at her for a moment, before offering a rare shadow of a smile.

"Do you still want to eat out, Hinata-san?" He asked, a lighter tone in his voice, even though he still used the formal suffix. She smiled in return at the little progress they had made and nodded.

"I'd like that a lot." She said.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

In the emergency room, Sakura continued her tireless efforts with the variety of patents the hospital received. Oftentimes, the room had patients ranging from a sprained ankle to near death ninja who were still coming in daily from the battlefield.

Taking a breath after finishing up with one of her patients who had suffered a number of burns when her shop had caught fire in the recent battle, Sakura stepped out of the hospital for a quick breath of fresh air. It wasn't often she had the chance to take a break and the images of dead or dying patients on the table was starting to get to her.

She found a small bench just outside the hospital doors and pulled a cold drink from her pocket that she had grabbed from a vending machine on her way out. Pulling back the tab, she smiled at the hiss it made as it snapped open. One thing she got from this war was the appreciation of the little things. She could take in the beauty of the day, and be glad for even one life saved at her hands. She sat for a moment, taking in the fresh air and the twittering of birds that flew carefree in the sky above her. It almost made her forget about the horrors she faced everyday.

A tear slowly slid down her face, even though the smile remained. Lately she had taken to crying, even when she wasn't so full of despair. The death of her parents, and the deaths she saw constantly around her was beginning to take its toll on her and she could no longer leave the hospital without breathing a sigh of relief and crying herself to sleep.

"Sakura-san?" Tsunade's voice beside her snaps the younger girl out of her daze. She looked up to see the Hokage looking down at her, worry written across her features.

"Ah, Tsunade-sama." She smiled up at her mentor, wiping away the tears from her cheeks. "I didn't see you standing there." She shifted over so that the older woman would have somewhere to sit and turned her attention to the can of pop in her hands.

"Sakura-san, are you alright?" Tsunade asked, still watching her young student. The pink-haired woman nodded and lowered her smile, knowing it wasn't worth much. "I don't know how to tell you this, except bluntly. Your parents were uncovered in the wreckage of the Yamanaka's flower shop." Sakura's head shot up and she gave the Hokage and intense stare. She'd been eager for news of her parents ever since she had been unable to unearth them herself.

"Where were they?" She asked. Tsunade gave her a pained look and turned her gaze from the young girl, uneasy about the information she was about to drop onto the poor girl's shoulders.

"They were in one of the refrigerators in the basement." She replied. Sakura gave her a confused look, but remained silent, waiting for the blonde woman to continue. "They were trapped inside when a piece of the wooden beams holding up the first floor collapsed."

"They're alive?" The young woman asked, hope flickering softly in her eyes. Tsunade turned away and could almost feel the air get colder as the hope was ripped from green eyes and her features went lax.

"The examiner said they would have had enough air coming from the pumps, except there was a blockage in the vents caused by the collapse of the rest of the building. They survived for another few days until there was no longer enough oxygen to sustain them." Tsunade turned at the sound of a broken sob and found the girl beside her with her hands over her lips as though to stop the tears which were pouring down her face.

"They were alive when I was trying to dig them out." She whispered to herself, bending forward to rest her forehead on her knees, still trying to stifle her sobs with her hands. Tsunade could feel waves of pain rolling off her student, understanding how deeply the loss of a family member ran, and was about to place a comforting hand on the young woman when Sakura stood up abruptly. "I'm sorry, Tsunade-sama, but I don't think I can be here right now." She exclaimed softly and ran off in the direction of the Hokage monument. She had noticed that Sakura liked going to the rocks when she was feeling depressed, and had no doubt she was headed there now, too.

It was something Sakura liked to do, go to the very top and lose herself in the wonderful vision of the tiny village beneath her. It always calmed her and made her contemplate the larger picture.

Tsunade sighed softly and got up and returned to the sterile and white hospital that was filled with unending pain.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"When he wakes up, he should be fine." The voice broke through the darkness, and groggily he began to awaken. "That's not to say he's ready to be put in the battlefield right away, he'll need to rest a little and regain his lost chakra, but after a week or two, he should be ready to go back out and do light sparring again." He opened his eyes slightly and groaned at the pain that threatened to split his head in two. The noise alerted the rest of the people in his room to his awakening and they turned their attention to him instantly.

"He's waking up!" He recognised the high-pitched voice, but the stabbing pain between his eyes prevented him from thinking about it too much. He squinted through his lashes and spotted the chubby faces of his mother and father.

"We thought we had lost you Chouji-san." Tsunade smiled down at him, checking over his chart and nodded approvingly. She quickly excused herself and left the room to tend to other patients and allow the three some time to catch up.

He sat up on his hospital bed and smiled at his father who was staring at him with a mixture of sadness and pride.

"How long was I out?" He asked, looking back and forth between his father and mother. They shared a look before Choumaru replied to the question with a sigh.

"You were found a few hundred metres from the wall boundary of the village a week ago. You were found this way." The tubby young man gave his father a confused look.

"Chouji, you've been missing for just over half a month." His mother supplied, looking sorrowful. They both knew there were going to be some distressing things they would have to fill their son in on.

"What happened?" He asked, starting to become unnerved by the sombre look they shared.

"Nearly half the village was lost, including many fine ninja and innocent villagers." Choumaru explained. "Shops were levelled and lives are being rebuilt as we speak. Your young friend Shikamaru lost his mother in the battle." Chouji's eyes went wide at this news and he immediately flung back the covers in an effort to leave.

"Please wait!" His mother cried out, holding him back by the shoulder. "You only just woke up."

"That doesn't matter. Tsunade-sama said I would be able to leave when I woke up." He exclaimed, pushing her hands off of him. "How's Shikamaru doing?" He continued. Choumaru gave his son a grave look.

"His father's not helping much. He couldn't deal with his wife's death and for the last two weeks has been to every bar in the village more than once, leaving Shikamaru alone. I think I heard that the young man even quit being a ninja for the time being while he's looking after his father."

For a moment, Chouji's look of sullenness mirrored his parents before his eyes took on a determined glint.

"I'm going to go see how he's doing." He replied, standing from his bed.

"Tsunade-sama won't like this." His mother whispered softly. He turned to her and frowned.

"I'm an adult. I can make my own decisions. If I feel I am healthy enough to visit Shikamaru, you won't stop me." He exclaimed, stunning both his parents with his bold behaviour. They sighed together and nodded. Choumaru handed him some clothes from home that had been folded on the windowsill, waiting for him to wake up and wear them.

"I'll see you later." He said, escorting them out of his room so he could change on his own. Within minutes he was dressed and found that his parents had gone ahead and signed him out already, so he had nothing more to do than head over to the Nara household.

It was getting later on and the sunset lit his way to his best friends house. He paused for a moment when he saw Ino leaving, but grinned happily when she spotted him and rushed over to give him a hug.

"I didn't even know you had been found!" She exclaimed ecstatically, trying to be careful of his obvious wounds. He was happy that his team mate had missed him. "I swear no one tells me anything."

"It's good to see you too, Ino-chan." He beamed proudly. "We should spend some time together soon and catch up." He suggested, knowing the two former team mates hadn't seen much of each other since threats of war had first gone around nearly a year ago.

"I've missed you, Chouji." She smiled softly and looked back to the door she had closed moments before. The tubby teen turned his eyes to the door as well, noting the solemn mood their meeting had taken.

"Is he okay?" He asked, stepping back from the blonde girl. She shrugged distractedly and toed the dirt as though she was nervous.

"He's distant." She replied hesitantly. "He needs a friend, and I don't think I've been much help for him over the last week." Chouji nodded and kissed her cheek.

"Thank you anyways, Ino-chan." He said and waved her goodbye, heading to the door. He knew it would be unlocked for the simple fact that Shikamaru was generally too lazy to shut the bolts on the door immediately after someone's just left. He turned the knob and shoved the door open gently, stepping inside. The fragrant aroma of freshly cooked food greeted him and he noticed just how little food he's had over the two weeks he's been out.

"Supper's on the table." Shikamaru called out sullenly from the living room where he was still lounging on the couch.

"But I thought it was for your father?" He grinned, peering around the corner to glimpse his best friend's shocked look.

"Chouji?" Shikamaru walked slowly into the front hall, smirking at the red-haired man. "You've been gone a long time. I heard rumours that you had been found, but I figured if they spoke the truth, someone official would tell me." Chouji stepped forward and grabbed the dark-haired man in a hug that rivalled Ino's previous one. Shikamaru was never one to take the first step. Or second, either.

"Apparently I've been in a coma for half a month." Chouji shrugged, stepping back when the hug started to feel awkward. "What's this I hear about your father's behaviour?"

"He's been grieving." Shikamaru shook his head, hoping his friend wouldn't delve too far into the subject. It constantly reminded him of the reason his father was acting in such a way.

"That's no excuse, Shikamaru." Chouji frowned, crossing his arms and feeling a little like he was about to give the young man a very stern lecture, but he was interrupted by the loud slam of the front door behind them. Both men turned to find Shikato asleep on the welcome mat, door ricocheting back to hit the older Nara in the head. The smack did nothing but make the jounin mumble in his sleep, holding tighter to the open liquor bottle that was flowing onto the floor.

Both friends snapped into action, Chouji prying the now empty bottle from the man's firm grip, while his son slipped an arm around his father's waist and tossed the limp arm around his shoulders, heaving the dead weight up so he could carry the sleeping corpse into the living room and onto the couch.

"Get me some ice and wet cloth." Shikamaru ordered to Chouji, who was already on his way to do so, having worked with his friend for so long. He returned seconds later with a small ice pack, for the older man's head and a couple of wet cloths and was followed by the sound of the coffeemaker going.

"This has to stop." He whispered softly, unsure if he wanted Shikamaru to hear his words or not. They were heard anyways and his friend shot him a stern glare before continuing to patch up his poor drunken father. Chouji accepted the glare, neither getting offended nor defensive about his words, and decided to go get a cup of the freshly made brew for the older Nara and his impending hangover.

They worked together in silent understanding until Shikato began too wake up, moaning and holding his head gently. Chouji winced, remembering the feeling of pain shooting through his head when he first woke up a few hours earlier.

Once things were settled, and Shikato had drank a few cups of the super strong coffee, it was Chouji who broke the silence at the dinner table. Both Naras were hunched over their food, content to stay in their own little worlds and have as little interaction with the other people at the table as possible, and Chouji couldn't take it.

"I don't know how you two could possibly have been doing this for so long." He growled, capturing two pairs of startled black eyes. He turned his frown upon Shikato first. "How can you do this to your son? I understand that you've lost your wife, but he's your son! You can't just ignore him and pretend that he isn't giving up everything to help out around here. Sure, I haven't been around to see what exactly is going around, but from what I've heard you haven't even taken notice that your son is still alive. You act like you're the only one left in the world when, in actual fact, you're making Shikamaru feel that way." Shikamaru had been about to protest when he realised how true his friend had been about himself. But Chouji wasn't done. He turned his lecture to the younger Nara and continued. "And you just let him do this. You say that he's grieving, but I don't see you doing any of this so called grieving. All you do is look after your father, not allowing yourself to heal. You've even given up being a chuunin to do this, and you're getting nothing out of it." He took a breath, but stopped when he noticed that neither men were looking at him anymore. They were talking to each other.

"You quit?" Shikato asked, looking completely bewildered. "I didn't realise. I'm so sorry." He looked down to his plate in shame. "You've been doing so much, and I've been drinking so much I forgot you even existed."

"It's not your fault, dad." Shikamaru brushed it off. "I understood what you were going through. To have argued or protested would have made me the selfish one."

"Want to make a deal?"

"What kind of deal?" Shikamaru looked at his father suspiciously.

"I stop drinking if you go back to being a ninja." He replied. "I'll stop shutting you out if you start opening up." Shikamaru nodded to the agreement, shaking his father's hand to seal it. They looked at their hands for a moment before embracing each other in a tight hug.

"I miss her, dad." Shikamaru exclaimed. Shikato nodded and stifled a sob, clutching close to the only living piece of his wife he had left.

"I do too."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

It wasn't the first night that found Naruto lying on his rooftop, and it wasn't to be his last either. He sighed softly, staring at the twinkling starlight that had come out only an hour or so earlier. He could still see wisps of pink clouds floating by the horizon, telling of the sun that had just set. Occasionally the stars would be blocked by the stray cloud, but for the most part, it was a clear night.

A warm breeze picked up and the young man flinched involuntarily, before he could tell himself it was just the wind. Regardless, he began shivering, despite the fact that it was the middle of summer. All of his senses focused around him in case something happened; something similar to what happened in the market that afternoon.

He'd been minding his own business, trying to keep a low profile and get himself something to eat when he was dragged aside by a pair of rough hands. He would have cried out but his mouth was covered by another hand and then was dragged into the darkness of an alleyway. There were voices all around him and it took a moment before he could orient himself to understand what they were shouting about.

"I don't know why we don't just do this in public, the whole village hates him." A voice behind him hissed. "It's not like most of them would mind anyways."

"He's got friends in high places, ass." This time, it was the person who had first grabbed him. "If Tsunade heard about this, we'd never see the light of day."

Deciding to ignore the voices, Naruto focused on getting himself free of the hands on his body. He stilled for a moment before latching his teeth on the hand covering his mouth. In an instant there was a loud chorus of shouting and howling as the men tried to hold Naruto down.

"Get off me, bastards!" He hissed, knowing they had every right to want to do this to him, but not being able to resist the urge to fight back either.

"Why should we, dobe?" A voice hissed, its owner stepping out of the shadows. The nickname sent shivers down Naruto's back and he closed his eyes, afraid of the malice he heard. "You don't know how much you really deserve this."

"You're wrong." Naruto moaned when he felt a fist slam into his gut. "I know."

"You say you know, but everyone knows you're a monster." The voice spat back, filled with hate and anger. "You're nothing but a monster without feelings. You show no remorse for the people of this village who died because of you, dobe." Naruto could hear the sneer in the voice.

"Please stop calling me that." He whimpered when another fist connected with his chin, sending him to the ground quickly.

"Why?" The young man crowed, pulling Naruto up by the collar so that he could see his attacker's face in the fading light. "Does it make you hot when Sasuke calls you this?" Around him, Naruto could hear the rest of the people snickering to themselves at the comment. Spurned on by the comments, his attacker continued. "You just can't wait to jump the Uchiha, can't you?"

"Stop saying these things." Naruto growled, pushing the man away and struggling to his feet. "It's not true."

"Of course it isn't, dobe." The blonde leaned heavily on the closest wall, wheezing for air. "Sasuke hates you, you know."

"No he doesn't."

"Yes, he does. We all know what he did to you."

"He apologized."

"He was forced to by Tsunade. Everyone knows he hates your guts. He probably wouldn't set foot in the same room with you if he didn't have to." Naruto shook his head, telling himself the boy was just saying these things in spite.

"He meant what he said to me after I got out of the hospital."

"Just like he meant what he said on the rooftop, too."

"No."

"Sasuke can't even stand to look at you. He was just voicing opinions he's kept from you for years. You're the reason he left the village six years ago. You're the reason Akatsuki and Sand have teamed up against Konohagakure. You're the reason so many lives were taken from us. Sasuke never meant that apology. He only said it so that he didn't have to feel guilty for ruining your life. He's just that kind of guy. He only stands your presence because he has a duty to Konohagakure. You're nothing to him in the long run."

"He said…" Naruto trailed off, becoming lost in his memories of that day. The young man took advantage of this and leaned closer to whisper into the blonde's ear.

"He said you were a monster. You don't deserve to live."

"I'm so sorry." Naruto closed his eyes and began sobbing. The young man stepped back, admiring his work. He'd been so pissed off when Sasuke had come after him the first time he'd treated Naruto this way, but he knew that the dark ninja was no where near their area, and he would get his revenge on the blonde who'd wronged him. Sasuke only defended Naruto's honour because he felt guilty. And now Naruto believed it too.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke sat in his study, trying to fathom how he had gotten himself into such a mess. He couldn't get in touch with Naruto at all, and every time he came close, the blonde would slip through his fingers once more. He thought he had heard every excuse under the sun from Kakashi, but Naruto was an entirely different story. Sitting huddled on the floor in Naruto's house, Sasuke thought his apology had been accepted, but knew he had been to sure of himself. He felt like bashing his head on any nearby hard surface for being stupid enough to believe that one dumb apology would fix things. If only life really worked that way.

So, not only was Naruto avoiding him, but Kakashi was late. Again. He had called his former sensei over for a quick bite to eat as well as for some personal advice and guidance. He had a small problem, and Kakashi was one of the only people he knew of that could help him. It had worked in the past, so he figured it might help him again.

He was about to get up and turn in for the night, giving up on his teacher when there came a knock at the door. He rolled his eyes and went to the door, peeking out, but no one was there. He found it slightly odd, but there was no sign that anyone had even been there in the first place. He frowned, shutting the door and would have turned around if he hadn't found himself face to face with the silver-haired jounin he'd been waiting for.

"What took you so long?" He hissed. The man shrugged and invited himself into the Uchiha house. "You're nearly two and a half hours late."

"I felt like being late." He replied, shrugging his shoulders lightly. Sasuke frowned again at the lack of an excuse from the man, noticing almost immediately the effects the war had on his former teacher. He sighed, but followed Kakashi back into his study.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Sasuke offered, not surprised when he received no reply.

"Get to the point, Sasuke." Kakashi spoke after a few minutes of silence. He was standing at the window, staring at the world outside. He turned for a moment to look at the dark-haired genin before returning his steady gaze to the wilderness outside.

"I need some help."

"I figured as much." Sasuke sighed heavily and sat down in the armchair he'd been waiting in for more than two hours.

"You helped me with the curse seal in the past." He began, hesitating only slightly. "Well, things are different now, and I need advice with how to deal with it the way that it is." Kakashi nodded, remembering how the curse seal looked when the young man had been in the hospital. "I'm afraid that the way it looks now will have an impact on me."

"You should expect it to." Sasuke ignored the snide remark and continued.

"I'm afraid of what I might do if I get angry again; if it gets the chance to activate again." There was a brief silence before Kakashi finally turned away from the window and took the seat opposite from Sasuke, looking both grim and steadfast in what he was about to say. Sasuke saw the last minute hesitation in Kakashi's face as the jounin said something other than what he was about to say.

"I've heard rumours." He said softly. "About the so-called 'real' events on that roof top. People are saying some nasty things."

"Rumours are petty and beneath me." Sasuke gritted out, clenching his fists. He had heard the rumours too, and refused to speak with anyone who dared to confront him with the truth. "I understand why Naruto is such an easy target for these people. They want to chew him up and spit him out."

"Can you understand why he won't let you in so fast again?" He asked. Sasuke thought for a moment, before nodding. He didn't realise the older man was so perceptive. "I won't help you, Sasuke." This comment startled Sasuke for a moment and he leapt to his feet in outrage.

"What do you mean! This fucking curse could very well ruin my life and the lives of people I care most about and you won't help me?" Kakashi shook his head, lowering his eyes to his lap.

"I helped you once before and it did nothing for you. Talk to someone who knows something about this curse seal."

"Orochimaru is dead!" Sasuke yelled, wincing when he felt his shoulder throb in response to his rage. He stumbled to his knees, gripping the seal as though to keep it from taking over him again.

"If you don't figure it out, you will never be free of Orochimaru. You will never be free of Itachi. And you will never be able to protect the one you love the most." With one final glance in the younger man's direction, Kakashi stood. "If you allow your anger to control you, you will never survive this war." In a swirl of leaves, the room was silent, only Sasuke remaining. He blinked in confusion at the mysterious wording his teacher used, before turning around and slamming his fist into the arm of the soft chair. It shattered into a dozen different pieces; drawing blood from Sasuke's closed fist and littering the floor with evidence of his rage.

He swore under his breath and left the room.

(End of Chapter)

Well… I finally finished… I apologise again for making you all wait for over a month for this… again, originally I had it ready and stuff to go… but it didn't fit properly because I had forgotten a lot of key details in the rush job of the previous chapter. And if this gets the OK from Mi-kun, then for sure the next chapter will be posted within the next couple of days… I'm not going to make you guys wait for it to come out.

And again… the next chapter WILL reveal the secret behind Naruto's locked room.

_**This chapter is awarded the Mi-kun Seal of Approval. **_

To truefightingwolf and Fallin' From Grace: Yeah… I apologize for taking so long… I'm not dead… I just screwed up when I was typing the last chapter… this time things are REALLY in order… I've checked and double checked. And to Fallin' From Grace, your review was the one that firced be to finish the last two scenes and get my editor to work on it… took her three days…

To AlterEthereal: surprisingly, I find Naruto really easy to write about, but that might be because I'm a lot like him… him and Shikamaru… (my friend has nicknamed me Shika-chan). About the question… um… it kind of does, but not in terms of the future, more in terms of their past. Do you remember the time where Naruto 'died'? If Naruto hadn't been there with him, he would have gone crazy. Not a real confession yet.

To Kyuubi-kun: I think it was your review that made me go back over my notes and realise that I was missing things… Naruto didn't go back to Sasuke automatically.

To Lazuli: hurrah for MK. I adore her. It surprised me when she told me she was a fan of my story. Heh…

To Lord(ess) Stewfu: I'm glad you started reading it as well. I don't lose the reviews that actually say something important. To tell you the truth… I don't know how I did it all too. I've never written anything longer than… 15 chapters… and if I try to, I have a habit of losing interest in the series. Of course, that could be because I was watching the dubs of things. My friends laughed at me when I told them that I was planning to write a story that was over 50 chapters.

To Vermillion Wolf: No offence taken. It takes a lot to offend me. (mostly just flames actually… and I can tell the difference between criticism and flames).


	62. Writing on the Walls

Finally, I post the chapter that reveals the secret behind Naruto's Room of the Dead… have fun and enjoy… it's shorter than the previous ones, though.

Chapter Title: 61. The Writing on the Walls

Naruto glanced outside to the village houses that were illuminated in the moonlight. He quietly watched as dozens of people walked down the main road towards the centre of the village to celebrate the autumn festival. It was the first time they felt it was a good time to celebrate anything. Naruto laid his head down to rest on his arms as he watched the many colourful lights in the distance, sighing in disappointment. He longed to be out there enjoying all of the games the villagers had set up in the stalls and being normal for once, but knew he was neither wanted nor welcome at their celebration.

Nobody wanted a monster to ruin their festival.

He glanced down to the street again to see a couple of families laughing gaily with each other, walking at a leisurely pace towards the center of the festival. He frowned lightly, wishing that the young child that woman was holding was him, but he knew that that woman would most likely turn her head away in disgust if Naruto had been her cursed child. Keeping his eyes on the street he started to notice that everyone who walked past would look up warily at his window. It was almost as if going past that building would evoke the horrible demon that lived there and they wouldn't be able to enjoy their little party. Naruto glared at the man passing by and snorted, standing from the window.

He drew the blinds closed and left the sill, finally having had enough of something he really couldn't have.

"Don't worry, Konohagakure." He muttered to himself. "This beast won't be crashing your party. Not tonight."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Tsunade was seated amongst the center of the activities. She smiled politely at everyone who passed her, grateful to Sandaime's grandson for this idea. The young teen and his friends had returned to the village with barely a scratch. They had been on the outskirts of the village, regaining any of the shinobi who might have been taken hostage.

Konohamaru had told her that if the village had something to celebrate they would be in much livelier spirits. She snickered to herself, watching him run from stall to stall, wonder clearly evident in his eyes. She wasn't quite sure if the boy had meant what he said or if he only said it to have the party. Whatever the reason, he had been right. Lanterns and streamers were hung all around the base of the Hokage monument and seemed to filter into the main parts of the village. She nodded again at a couple of chuunin students who passed by her chair. It reminded her of the two men standing at her side, one of them stiff as a board. She looked up to the jounin and frowned slightly.

"I see your three students are nowhere to be found." She exclaimed to the tense man. Kakashi shrugged lightly and looked down. He had appointed himself guard to Hokage for the night, as he had nothing better to do.

"Are you surprised?" He replied, not bothering to hide the edginess in his voice. Tsunade sighed.

"I suppose not." She answered and turned her gaze back to the festivities. "Poor children. I just don't want to see them keep it all bottled up inside until they do something foolish." She muttered to herself. Kakashi glanced down, frowning.

"They are not children anymore." He bristled. The female Hokage nodded calmly.

"I know, however what they've gone through I should not wish upon my greatest enemy, even if he did deserve it." Kakashi remained silent and went back to surveying the crowd stiffly. Tsunade shook her head and followed Kakashi's gaze to the masses where she spotted Haruno Sakura being dragged through the crowds from stall to stall by Yamanaka Ino.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Sakura-chan!" Ino whined impatiently. Sakura's arm was slack in her grip and the pink-haired girl neither protested nor followed. Ino turned around to look at her friend and saw that her face was once again blank. She had felt that if she brought Sakura to the festival she'd lighten up a bit and forget all the bad things for a couple of hours. Sakura gazed blankly into Ino's eyes and the blonde cringed, not knowing how her friend could have receded into herself this much.

"Ino, I would like to go home now." Sakura whispered softly, her voice barely audible over the many people's excited clamour. "I don't feel up to celebrating tonight." Ino acted as if he hadn't heard her friend's request and brought her towards a brightly decorated stall that advertised catching goldfish. The man behind the counter was laughing merrily and there were only a few people lined up to have a go at the game. Ino looked behind her again and found Sakura with her gaze on the pebbles beneath her feet and not at the stall they had come to.

"Sakura-chan, why don't you try this one?" She asked, pulling her friend closer to the stall. Sakura looked up and froze in her place, a gasp escaping her lips.

She began to convulse horribly, tossing her head from side to side as memories of her mother and father taking her to this same stall played through her mind.

"Sakura-chan, why don't you try this one?" Sakura's mother leaned down and asked her. That day, Sakura had smiled and nodded her head feverously before taking the paddle the man offered to her.

"Mother... father..." She whispered, snapping out of her memories. Tears were pouring down her face and many people had stopped to stare at the shaking girl. Ino looked at Sakura worriedly and reached out to grasp her arm, but the pink-haired genin had other ideas and stumbled backwards. "I can't do this!" She cried and pushed her way through the gathering crowd towards the forest.

Ino stared off after the girl looking pained. She had hoped that the festival would take Sakura's mind off of her parents, not remind her of them.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Uchiha Sasuke cursed loudly when he saw Sakura run out of the village centre and straight through the forest, going right past him. He had been sitting in a large Japanese Pagoda tree watching the village, when the girl burst into tears and had fled the stand to be on her own. He considered chasing after her, but thought better of it, knowing his presence wouldn't serve any purpose and definitely wouldn't comfort her. He cursed himself again quietly, knowing that if he had been even a little bit stronger he could have prevented her pain. If only he had kept going... ignored the blood and the pain. He could have spared so much grief. He looked out to the festival stalls and bowed his head. He could have protected all those innocents.

He scanned the crowd for any signs of his sparring partner. The blond man was no where to be seen, although he wasn't surprised in the least. He felt his shoulders slump in disappointment and sighed. He had hoped that the notion of a party would spark the teen's morale a bit, but he was mistaken. In the last month and a half, Naruto had withdrawn into himself and was a bitter shell of his former flamboyancy. He no longer laughed, pulled pranks, complained and he never smiled. Sasuke had tried everything, said everything, but the man's spirit had been crushed by the war and Sasuke's betrayal. He found that even looking into his once sky-blue eyes gave him chills. Something about the mischievous glint in his eye and the smirk that played across his features had always given him hope.

Finally giving up on finding his rival in the masses, Sasuke turned around on his branch, determined to seek him out. If he couldn't bring Naruto to smile, at least he could check up on his friend to see how he was doing and maybe head to the training grounds. After seeing Sakura run off crying, Sasuke felt an even greater urge to train. He didn't really care that he was being selfish and he ignored what the doctors had told him. They didn't realize that he needed to be free of the guilt and that the only way to do that was to train hard until the next time fate entwined his and Itachi's paths.

If he had been stronger, he would have been able to stop his brother. He wasn't about to let their next encounter end the way it had the last time... with hundreds dead. He wouldn't let any more people's lives be destroyed.

He jumped from his branch to the nearest tree and headed towards Naruto's house, not aware that his method of concealing hadn't hidden him from the Sharingan.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Kakashi turned away from the forest when Sasuke disappeared from view. He had seen the look of guilt cross his features when Sakura had flown past him and he had seen how quickly determination set in. He was slightly worried that the man would work himself sick, but he knew that he was a very stubborn young man when he wanted to be. Even though the horrible event that had destroyed the village had been over a month and a half earlier, Sasuke still bore the scars from his battles. They were now nothing more than ugly red gashes, that over time would disappear entirely, but they only helped fuel Sasuke's intense burning desire to continue training. When he had been patched up, Kakashi had also noticed that the curse seal given to him by Orochimaru had grown and had spread to most of the side of his neck and down his shoulder. A couple of weeks after that day he had been changing Sasuke's bandages again when he noticed that the seal was still the same size. He knew that his firmer student was worried about the size of the curse seal, but there really wasn't anything Kakashi could do for him now.

Kakashi shook his head, trying to dispel the memories. He didn't want to deal with them at the moment. He knew that if he had the chance to check, he'd find the seal the same exact size, if not larger. The boy held a grudge against his brother so large that nothing would help him forget that anger, only suppress it.

Tsunade looked up at her guardian and sighed loudly and purposely. Kakashi was shaken from his thoughts as she called on his attention.

"Why are you not enjoying yourself?" She asked. Kakashi looked at her, but said nothing, glad that most of his face remained hidden. "You should have fun, enjoy the lights and the life that is left in Konohagakure." She spread her arms wide to emphasize the wondrous excitement that had overtaken the village after so many days of sorrow. Kakashi shrugged and glanced somberly out to the flocks of people that gathered around each stand.

"What's the point?" He asked, his voice monotonous. Tsunade shook her head sadly.

"At least half of the people present lost someone dear to them in that battle, however they are doing their best to go on with their lives. Why can't you?" She asked. Kakashi sighed and dipped his chin to his chest.

"It's because they have had so much time to grieve and mourn for their dead. I cannot go on with my life happily and forget it all until I have properly mourned. Something of which I do not have enough time to do."

Tsunade studied his face for a few moments before nodding and returned her gaze to the festivities. She had offered the Jounin to take off as much time as he wanted but he had flat out refused saying the amount of time he needed was too much and that he had wanted to mourn on his own terms, without anyone forcing him into grieving. He hadn't wanted to sit at home brooding. Iruka wouldn't have wanted that.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke stepped up to the wooden door of Naruto's apartment and rapped softly on the solid frame. When no reply came he slid open the door, not entirely surprised to see it unlocked, and stepped inside. The whole room was darkened and all the blinds had been drawn so that the festival lights were blocked out. Sasuke looked around and noticed that an eerie silence had descended upon the entire apartment, broken only by the slow and steady drip of water from the leaky faucet in the kitchen. He walked forward and looked first in the kitchen and then from room to room. There was nothing, no one.

He paused when he felt his foot slide in something wet on the floor. He looked down and lifted his foot to see what he had stepped in. The ground was littered with small splotches of a dark liquid that led from the kitchen to the room that Naruto had always kept locked, only now the door was left cracked open slightly, the light flickering as though it had been on for hours, but the room was still dark and he couldn't see inside too well. He took a step closer to the room and his breath hitched in his chest.

In the light, he saw the dark liquid turn to a sickly red and the drops become puddles, leading him directly to the room. He frowned trying to calm his breathing and convince himself that there was nothing wrong, but as he kept inching cautiously closer, the droplets of liquid were starting to look all too much like blood. He came up to the opening of the door and pushed it open, tensing for an attack, but none came. He peered around the door frame and instantly wished he hadn't as horror and nausea washed over him like a tidal wave.

Sitting in a thick pool of his own blood was just the boy he had been searching for, with his arms hanging limply at his sides, wrists slit deeply. His head lolled onto his shoulder gruesomely and his skin was a ghastly white. Written all over the white walls of the room were names. Just above Naruto's tilted head, he recognized the characters that made up Iruka's name, painted in thick red blood, still dripping down onto the blonde's shoulders. That was when he realized that some of the names looked very familiar. Iruka's name was on the walls, as were the names of Sakura's parents and two of the previous four Hokages. The walls were painted almost completely red with the bloody names of the dead.

Sasuke stumbled backwards, tripping over his own feet, as he gasped for breath at the sight of his rival. It took him a moment before he could collect himself and run forward. He lifted the blonde's arms trying to stem the flow of blood, while doing everything he could think of to try and bring him back to consciousness again. He tried to keep his mind off of the writing on the walls, but his eyes kept wandering to the blood that dripped from his friend's fingertips and the freshly written characters of Umino Iruka.

"Naruto!" He screamed, his eyes moist with tears. He didn't even notice them as he felt the boy's cold clammy neck for a pulse. It was faint, but he eventually caught traces of it and let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. He picked up Naruto's lifeless torso and sat behind him, maneuvering his body like a chair, trying to busy his fingers with using his shirt to stop the bleeding.

A sharp hollow laugh jolted him back to his senses. He looked at the blonde to find him chuckling hoarsely to himself. He frowned, shifting Naruto's body in his lap so he would be a bit more comfortable.

"It's no use trying to save me, Sasuke-kun." Naruto whispered, tearing his hands from Sasuke's grasp. He made to argue and take them back again, but he saw a strange look of despair and grief flicker across his rival's face. He paused for a moment, finding himself lost in the boy's clouded blue eyes. "I'm not going to die..." He muttered, hanging his head in defeat, which thoroughly confused Sasuke. He frowned at the boy, but Naruto made no move to raise his glance to meet the Uchiha heir's glare. He pulled at the hem of his shirt and cleared away the blood before thrusting his hand beneath Sasuke's nose.

He looked down to see that the wounds, however deep they might have been, had already started to heal up and repair themselves right before his eyes. He couldn't believe it.

"Look for yourself. The cuts are already healing... I'm being forced to live."

"How...?" He trailed off, looking to Naruto for some sort of answer. Naruto shrugged, getting a far away look in his eyes.

"I'm cursed, remember?" He breathed out, his voice rough from crying. "The fox demon. The reason those ninjas tore the village apart a few months ago. Everyone is blaming me... and they're right. No matter how I want to live my life... or end it, the demon part of me makes all the decisions. I can't die by my own hands. Pretty ironic, ne? All those people from the village died against their wills... and me, the cause of it, forced to live against my own will." He looked up to Sasuke, his face relaxed with weariness. Sasuke looked up to the walls again and had to choke back tears, finally recognizing the common link between all the bloody names. Naruto believed that he was the cause of each person's death. "I'm so damn fucking tired of it, but there's nothing I can do..." He whispered, his salty tears mixing with the blood smeared across his face. "I guess you learn something new everyday, ne?" He added bitterly, making to rub away the tears but only succeeding in making them indistinguishable from the blood that dripped from his fingers.

Sasuke scowled darkly before gathering the blonde in his arms, rocking him back to sleep, muttering words of encouragement and hope from depths of which he hadn't known he had. For a moment he wondered why the lies poured from his mouth like running water and remembered the cheerful bright smile he had come searching for. He knew that whether they were lies or not, everything would be alright if that smile returned, but looking around at the blood splattered room in the dim flickering light and smelling the bitter tang of copper, he knew that even the truest lies were still just lies and it would take more than those to bring back the smile, however false it was, that once brought hope to his mere existence rather than the need for revenge. It may have been overly fake, but he felt that if Naruto could survive his pain and suffering and still put on a smile, so could he have the same strength to keep living through each day. It was something that told him, after he found vengeance by defeating Itachi there would be something left for him to return to.

Feeling Naruto finally go limp in his arms, he sighed and lowered his head to rest gently on the top of the blonde's, nuzzling the soft, blood-matted hair before closing his eyes, as well, and falling asleep to the buzz of the broken light bulb.

(End of Chapter)

WAHAHA! I've been waiting to post this chapter for almost two years!

Would you actually believe I had this written before anything else in this entire story? The only thing added or changed was the Third became Tsunade and I added the room. The room was actually supposed to be revealed later on when Neji and Hinata confront Naruto about Hanabi's death. I just decided you guys had been waiting for too long… and I lost my notes for those chapters. Aside from those additions, everything else is from nearly a year and a half ago. And because I wanted to keep it as much like the original, it's the same length too. About 2000 words shorter than my standard chapters now.

I gave this chapter to Mi-kun early on in the story… and it didn't make much sense to her, but then I resent it to her just after Iruka died in my story and she reread it and everything clicked. Hurrah for editors. Hugs for Mi-kun, cause I never would have gotten this far (in terms of popularity or anything) without you deleting all those commas. Plus, you're good to bounce ideas off of. If I become famous, I'm going to you first to check out my stuff. Heh…

To Aragornthia: I don't mind that you took a break. It must have been something wrong with the story. I'm glad you decided to give it another shot though.

To everyone else: Thank you so much for reading my stupid idea for a fanfiction. I don't know what compelled me to try something as big as this, but the response has been overwhelming. If I'm lucky and can get my notes organized, I can figure out how many chapters till the end, but as of right now, there's nothing so I have to go get organized. Heh heh… I'm not going to promise any dates for releasing the next chapter, but I will say this… I am working on it and it should be finished soon.

Oh… and for proof that this is as old as I say it is… this chapter is the source of the title of the story… Naruto no Hohoemi… Naruto's Smile. I changed it when I realized that there was a pattern throughout the whole story.


	63. Crumbling Alliance

Well, originally I had wanted to put this chapter first… and the following one second… then my editor said I should put the next one first instead… but I realise it's been over a month… and I still haven't finished that chapter, so I'm not going to waste your time anymore… I apologize for the wait, but… I'm lazy… I should have the other chapter finished REALLY soon… I'm gonna get Kyuubi-kun to bug me about it all weekend so I get it finished.

Chapter Title: 63. Crumbling Alliance

"And would you say that the eastern wall is an easy target?"

"N-no, sir. They've p-posted a number of guards on all walls, and we haven't yet figured out the pattern in the shifts."

"The guard change is still erratic?"

"It would appear that way, s-sir."

"Figure it out soon, or else we'll feed you to the demon."

"R-right, sir! I'm s-sorry, you'll get the report right away!" The young Sound ninja ran away, practically shaking in his sandals. The man he had been reporting to growled, annoyed, at his retreating back. There was very little organization in Sound, and it was starting to irritate the rest of the ninjas.

"I wish you would stop using me as a threat to get your work done." Gaara exclaimed, stepping out of the door the two men had been talking in front of. He didn't look too pleased with what he'd just heard. The other ninja shrugged, not taking the young man's words to heart.

"These ones have grown up listening to stories of mighty Orochimaru, the man who defied the Akatsuki in order to make his own village. They don't have too much respect for us anymore." Gaara gave him an amused look.

"And you think other villages respect you?"

"They at least fear us." He replied. "Sound has been brought up defying our power, not fearing it. You're scarier to them than we are."

"You'd thing your Sharingan would be enough." Itachi looked back and nodded before reaching for the handle on the door into the room Gaara had just left. "Itachi-kun, one more thing." Gaara stepped forward, grabbing the sleeve of the older Uchiha's cloak. "Our alliance is starting to crumble."

"I've noticed." Itachi nodded again, looking solemn. "Akatsuki doesn't like having only one claw in Sand. They're used to having total control."

"Sand doesn't like the idea of teaming up with criminals." Gaara added. Both men looked at each other for a moment, contemplating what had just been said.

"We can handle it, Sabaku no Gaara." Itachi gave the younger man a small smirk and headed inside.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Itachi stood before the other members of the rebel ninja group, which had grown in its numbers over the years. He remained quiet and confident as the men and women discussed the future of the group. It occurred to him vaguely that he was the only one standing at the front, but he could care less.

"The village will have a large number of ninja posted on the north wall."

"The west!" Argued another member. "We attacked from the north last time, so they will expect us to attack elsewhere the next time."

"Or they'll think that we'd remember that too and keep their guards on the north wall, in case we attacked there again. They'll have noticed it was a terribly weakness in their defence and fixed it."

"You give too much credit to Konoha." A different person spoke up. "They're nothing but dumb brutes who will do what their mindless queen tells them to. They'll probably stick most of their defences close to the Hokage's offices and forget about the outer walls." Itachi frowned, knowing that his comrades were starting to become dumb and lazy, due to the alliances they'd made. No one had to do any real reconnaissance now that they were becoming more immersed in the activities inside the boardroom instead of the action taking place outside of it. He coughed purposely, in an attempt to get the room's attention.

"I'm not sure how much you people actually know about how Konohagakure actually works, but they aren't dumb. They know that you all are here right now debating which wall would have the most security, and they've done the smartest thing they can. Their wall's guards are evenly distributed according to rank and ability. No matter which wall we attack, we'll meet the same resistance. I've already had some scouts get me information about the east wall and the scheduling for the change in shifts."

"You want to focus an attack on one wall?" The man on Itachi's right asked.

"Well, we either focus it in one area, or we attack from all sides." When the group gave him a blank stare, Itachi sighed and explained. "If we spread out our attack over the entire border of Leaf, they won't have the resources to call for back up. They'll fall to us, but only if we truly are the stronger force."

"It's not just strength we'll need." Temari spoke up from the doorway. Akatsuki had been allowed to use Sand's offices for any meetings, but no one had told her about the one they were just having. "We would also have to be the most prepared. Organization is also key in terms of a victory for Sunagakure as well as Akatsuki. If even a part of the group is in disagreement, we'll fall to the Leaf." She nodded to Itachi before excusing herself for the interruption and leaving. Almost immediately, the group was flustered with argument.

"How dare that child tell us how to run things!"

"What would she know about wars?"

"The insolence of her, walking in on our private meeting!"

Itachi sighed to himself and pulled out a seat. He hated when the group started to get political on him. He never cared much for the government's decisions, and concerned himself more with the actual following through of those actions. The final product was what ultimately mattered, not the suits that make the decision. He rolled his eyes and turned to Kisame, who had been sitting on his other side the whole time.

"Makes you almost wish you had stayed with your village, doesn't it?" Kisame whispered to him, leaning over to make their conversation private. Itachi shot him a glare.

"I may not like the politics that's taken over this organization, but I'll never regret my decisions." He hissed. "I'm doing the right thing."

"Survival of the fittest." Kisame shrugged and returned his attention back to the argument, which was starting to look like a fistfight.

"Exactly my thoughts." Itachi replied, though his words were more for himself than his partner. "It's just survival."

"Itachi-san!" A voice broke through the dark-haired missing-nin's thoughts. He lifted his head to see that they had reached an agreement in their debating.

"What?" He asked, agitation edging into his voice.

"We want you to go and do some more looking into who exactly guards the wall in what areas." Itachi nodded. "Find out who Leaf's powerhouses are and their weaknesses. I need to make sure we can take out those ninja's before the fighting gets too intense. That will be the key to our success, not some girl's notion of organization." The Uchiha rose from his seat and bowed low in respect before taking his leave from the stuffy boardroom.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Sabaku no Gaara!" Itachi called out, seeing the demon carrier walking down the hall away from him. The younger man turned at the voice and nodded stiffly. "Something's upset you."

"Not that you really care." Itachi smirked, but knew the redhead would answer his concerns. "Been talking with the Kazekage."

"And?"

"And he's losing control over Sand. He's letting his advisors make his decisions for him and he's losing sight of the real reasons for this war."

"Being a little petty, aren't you?"

"He's abusing his power. They're abusing his power. If he doesn't wise up soon, he'll lose more than just the village." Itachi nodded and they began walking to the front doors of the building. Neither man was meant for the indoors.

"It's only natural to be worried over your brother." Gaara gave him a bemused look and shook his head.

"Because you're the god of looking out for your brother's well being." He retorted, snidely. Itachi turned to him and pursed his lips into a grimace.

"Kankurou never seemed like Hokage material to me." Gaara shook his head, not bothered by the change in subject.

"Me either."

"Have you ever wondered about the decision he made to take the position?" Itachi asked. The younger man shrugged dismissively. "That might have been for you and you would never have known it."

"Kankurou was chosen by those advisors of his. They wanted someone they could control, and I guess he was just the perfect candidate for that position." Itachi shrugged and led them both to a small bench just outside and under the shade of a few trees. There was a silent agreement between both of them that the parties they were working on behalf of kept them on an unbearably tight leash.

"You could have been chosen, just as easily."

"I never would have allowed those men to control me."

"That might not have been your decision. The position of Kazekage would have been thrust upon you before you could develop your sense of identity and rebellion." They sat together in silence for a moment, the thought rolling through their minds violently, shaking the stability of both men's choices.

"I still think he should think about how he's running this place. There are more important things to worry about than me." Itachi smirked to himself, leaning back on the bench.

"Maybe you should have been elected Kazekage."

"What a laugh." Gaara replied, rolling his eyes. "Me protecting the village that tried to kill me a number of times over."

"Stranger things have happened." Another comfortable silence came over the pair before something occurred to Itachi. "Your sister accidentally walked in on our meeting. It was quite illuminating." Gaara looked at him for a moment before hanging his head in disappointment.

"That was no accident." He muttered. "She'd been warned not to walk in on your meetings. We know what you've done to people higher up than her who've interrupted your meetings. What did she say?"

"Nothing too drastic. Just some things about keeping everyone organized."

"Ah. No orders to off her, I wonder."

"Haven't heard anything."

"What are they planning in terms of Konohagakure?" Itachi didn't answer for a moment, and Gaara turned to the man, wondering if he'd been heard, but saw that the Uchiha had become distant, thinking about something else.

"They want me to eliminate Konohagakure's powerhouses."

"Do you even know who they are?"

"Of course. I'm not blind."

"I assume the big ones include the people we're both after?"

"Correct. Uzumaki and Sasuke probably haven't even thought about all of the underlying reasons for this war." Itachi sighed, running a hand through his hair, pulling off the vandalized Konohagakure hitai-ate. He looked at the article for a moment before dropping it to the bench beside him.

"Naruto knows." Gaara replied. Itachi looked at him, his face aging with the exhaustion that had settled in.

"You two have talked?"

"No, but I know him." Gaara said. "We're one and the same. He's not dumb enough to forget that your organization is after his demon. As for Sasuke… I've never really been able to read him properly, but I'm sure he's been too busy with other things to worry about the politics of this war." Itachi rolled his shoulders back and slouched back, leaning his arms over the back of the wooden seat,

"Ever get tired of it all; the fighting?"

"I've been fighting since I was born. If you don't get killed, you get used to it."

"Have there ever been times where you've wanted to give up? Take the easier path and let the demon take over?" Gaara looked over at the older man, a puzzled look coming over his face, and he knew there was some deeper meaning behind the Uchiha's words. It couldn't be as obvious as just the current war they were in, or his demon.

"Many times, but I'm still in control." He answered. "I would like nothing more than to sleep, and pretend I didn't have this horrible part of myself clawing its way out of me, but I cant."

"What's stopping you? You could just take a nap right now, and you wouldn't feel the pain of your decision."

"But I would, Itachi. If I didn't stop the demon, he would hurt people I care deeply about. If I didn't stop him, there would be no one else to protect them. It may be naïve, and the village may never realise what I've done for them, but I sacrifice this one little thing so they can live happy lives." Itachi remained quiet and reflective for a moment and Gaara wondered if his response had helped the older man any. He got his answer quick enough when he was offered a small smile.

"Thank you, Sabaku no Gaara."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Gaara left Itachi on the bench, more than a little bit disturbed by their conversation. He was unnerved by the simple fact that Itachi was starting to seem like a nice guy, despite what all the rumours said about his real personality. Even the guy's brother wanted him dead. He hoped that the older Uchiha wasn't suddenly developing some sort of conscious because of the war. It wouldn't make a good impact on the already waning reputation the Akatsuki had. He shook his head, focusing his attention back to the small group of men and women he was in charge of.

"How is the training schedule suiting you?" He asked, looking to one of the jounin men. They shrugged, still slightly afraid of talking normally with him, due to his own reputation. A trained killer doesn't just become a teddy bear overnight. "You all know that you're forbidden to kill any of your enemies?" He received a wave of nodding heads and folded his hands over his chest. "Think of it as a test of your skills as a shinobi."

"When do we move out Gaara-sama?" One woman spoke up, brave enough to speak, but the fear still evident in the quavering of her voice.

"Any day now, Kazekage will issue the orders to move in again. Be ready for my signal." They all nodded and he dismissed them to continue training.

"Impressive command you have over your squad, little brother." Gaara spun around at the sound of Kankurou's voice, only slightly worried that his orders had been overheard, but there was no indication on the older man's face.

"That is the key to a leader's success, Kazekage." He replied, bowing slightly in mock respect. "You need complete control over your subjects or else they're prone to mutiny."

"Wise words, Gaara." His brother replied, still not giving away that he'd heard anything blasphemous and turned away from the training grounds. "Continue the good work, brother." He continued on his way, as though his visit was nothing more than another inspection, and Gaara had to wonder how long he'd been watching him talk to his shinobi.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"You asked to see me, Kazekage?" Temari poked her head through the door, spotting her brother buried beneath a pile of papers still to be signed. He looked up at her interruption and smiled.

"Come in!" He waved her in, placing his signature on one last document before sliding the papers out of his way. "Can I talk to you about something, brother to sister?" She nodded, motioning for him to continue and noting that his advisors were not with him like they usually were. "I'm afraid of something." He told her.

"What could you have to be afraid of? You're a capable ninja, there is very little that you couldn't hold your own against." He shook her head, silently telling her that's not what he had meant.

"I was walking around the training grounds on my own, and I overheard Gaara talking to his squad."

"Alone?" Temari replied, but quieted when she saw his frown. Now was not the time to chide him on successfully losing his guardians.

"He was telling them not to kill their enemies, only to knock them out."

"What about that made you so worried?"

"Do you think our little brother is planning a rebellion?" He asked, looking anxious. Temari shrugged, letting her older brother hear the honest truth.

"Would you blame him if he did?" He sighed but shook his head. "I truthfully don't know, but if he is, it's for the good of this village."

"Why must he oppose me!" Kankurou slammed his fist down on the table, unsettling a few of the papers he had yet to sign.

"It's not you he's fighting against. You're his older brother, Kankurou. He loves you and respects you. It's just those horrible advisors of yours."

"What's so bad about them?"

"They're controlling you. Everyone who has half a brain can see it." In an instant, her brother was on the defensive as though her words were a personal insult. He stood up and leaned forward over the desk.

"You have no right to challenge the decisions they help me make." He snarled. She remained in her seat, unfazed by her brother's little temper display.

"As a citizen of this village, I have every right to question the decisions you make. Especially if those decisions are going to put me or the people I love in any kind of danger." Kankurou sighed, his anger quickly deflated, and slumped back into his chair.

"What is it about those men that has both you and Gaara so upset?" Temari thought about all the conversations she'd had with her younger brother, trying to recall the list they'd gone through.

"You're the puppet-master, but to them you're nothing more than an oversized puppet that they can manipulate into doing what they want. You've become too caught up in trying to do the right thing for Gaara that you've failed to see that an entire village's happiness is also at stake." Her brother sighed and pulled the Kazekage hat over his eyes.

"It's not as though I can just get rid of them." He replied. "It's not that simple."

"The most important decisions never are." She said, smiling.

"You know, I'm not making any decisions based on just this conversation alone. There may not even be any changes."

"So long as you think about what was said, that's all I have the right to ask of you." She smiled and stood from her small chair. "Please do thing about the greater good."

"Family will always come first, even if he hates me." Temari nodded her head and turned to leave when a small pigeon flew into the room, a small scroll tied to its feet. It fluttered down onto Kankurou's desk and held out its leg to have the package removed.

"What's that?" The blonde woman asked, curiosity getting the better of her manners.

"I sent out a scout to do some research for me on a few people, this must be his research." Temari returned to the desk, leaning over to see the paper being unrolled. The bird had flown back out the window long before. As they both read the contents of the report, a startled silence enveloped the room. The meaning behind the ink on the paper was more than Kankurou had expected, and such information made his life even more unmanageable.

"What are you going to do about this?" Temari spoke up after a moment.

"I don't know. Temari, can you please excuse me so I can have a moment to think over this new development?"

"Of course, Kazekage-sama." All of a sudden, it was back to business again, the previous moments they shared all but erased from their minds as more important things took precedence.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

There was a new set of uneasy among the remaining members of Akatsuki. While Itachi and a few other members had been sent out on various errands, the remaining members had discussed their alliance with Hidden Sand. There were some concerns brought up and addressed, but one problem was harder than the others to smooth out.

"He's never truly been a member of the group."

"But that's because we never allowed him to become a true member. Or have you forgotten the goal we had before the fox demon?" Kisame frowned, turning to the man beside him. He didn't understand what the other two Akatsuki members were arguing over.

"What are they talking about?" He asked softly, nudging Sasori in the side. The other ninja turned to him and gave him a confused look before remembering that Kisame hadn't been around that early, coming into the group a year after Itachi had.

"Almost fifteen years ago, our objective was the Sharingan." He replied loud enough for the others to hear and put in their own comments. The newer members remained silent, wanting to hear the story. "You've seen Hatake Kakashi's eye, haven't you? And you've all seen the kind of power he has and can gain from that single eye. If Akatsuki could harness the power of the Uchiha's bloodline limit, we could become unstoppable."

"If it weren't for that stupid boy's brilliant idea of killing off his family members, we might have had those eyes today."

"So then, how did Itachi manage to get into Akatsuki?"

"We cornered him." Sasori grinned. "We were ready to kill him for those eyes, but he made us an offer. So we gained a member with Sharingan in both eyes."

"Why didn't you just take the eyes?" Another junior member asked.

"You've obviously never gone up against Itachi in a match." Kisame replied, understanding setting in. The Uchiha eyes had never been surgically implanted because they had never been successfully retrieved. "But what about Sasuke?" Kisame turned to another member. The man cursed loudly and glared at the mention of the younger Uchiha's name.

"There's another thing. Itachi-san lied to us about his little brother."

"He lied?"

"Told us the boy had no talent for the Uchiha bloodline limit. He told us that Sasuke would never inherit the eyes and therefore was not worth using. Everyone worthwhile had been killed by the bastard."

"You shouldn't be bad mouthing the young man, he is our only connection to the Hidden Sand, through Gaara." One of the older members spoke up. He had on a sweet smile, but his eyes were hardened. "I don't think it would be wise to allow our pride to overrule our decision to destroy Konohagakure completely."

"But he gave up the chance to capture the demon when he had the chance!" Another member shot up, garnering a chorus of agreements.

"Those were just rumours." Kisame replied, frowning slightly. His hand twitched and he was reminded of how much he, like Itachi, hated politics. "All the people we've talked to have conflicting ideas of what they saw happen."

"But many of them admitted that they saw Itachi and Naruto within a few feet of each other! Naruto couldn't have possibly defeated him, or shown a threat, so there are no other options." Another of the more youthful men stood up and growled under his breath.

"He should be punished for his betrayal of the organization." He demanded. "From the sounds of it, this isn't the first time he's betrayed us either! How can you allow his kind of deception to continue?"

"You shouldn't be too quick to judge, Toushirou." The man, Toushirou, bowed his head in shame and took his seat once more. "Itachi is not the kind of shinobi you want as your opponent. I'm sure that once we have the numbers and the talent, we'll confront Uchiha about his lies."

"What about our alliance with Sand?" Sasori asked, changing the dangerous subject to something a little less hostile. "How long is this deal going to last?"

"Until we have the demon in our possession."

"What if we expanded our horizons after we have Uzumaki?"

"Expand?"

"Sabaku no Gaara."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

The assembled members of Kankurou's advisors were starting to get antsy, stuck in a meeting room of their own. They had called a conference with their Kazekage nearly an hour ago, but he still had yet to show up. No one really wanted to start the debating without the man, but they had many things to still discuss about the progress of their war.

Just as one of the eldest members stood to start the meeting, regardless of Kankurou's absence, the man they had been waiting for stumbled into the room. He looked up, apologizing profusely before taking his seat at the head of the table. The old man standing frowned, deeply, obviously displeased with his Kazekage, but unwilling to say anything about it.

"I didn't miss anything, did I?" Kankurou asked, looking to the old man. Everyone shook their heads, not wanting to start things off. "So then, what's this meeting about?"

"Why were you late, Kankurou-sama?" One of the advisors asked, ignoring the call to order. They wanted to keep their Kazekage in check more than discuss the war. "You know you can't behave in this fashion if you wish to properly run this village. If you are constantly late like this, the people will lose faith in your abilities to lead. How do you expect us to believe that you'll win us this war unless you prove your worth?" Kankurou bowed his head in shame, offering another apology.

"I was discussing some things over with my sister, including some possible double agents in the village." He explained. "As of yet I've not made any conclusions, but I'm still looking over the facts."

"Who is suspect?"

"I cannot say exactly who at the moment, in case this leaks to the rest of the village."

"Surely, you don't think any of us would repeat the words of this meting."

"Of course not, but it is safer if these names are not said allowed until I'm certain enough to make such accusations." The men nodded in agreement, reluctantly accepting his words, and returned to the order of business.

"Of course, sir. We called this meeting to inform you of what we know of Akatsuki's intentions as well as the information regarding Konohagakure's defences as well as their offence." Kankurou nodded and pulled out a small white pad of paper and began taking notes on the information his advisors were giving him. He was hurriedly scribbling when something was said that caught his full attention.

"Something happened with Uzumaki?" He piped up, stilling his pencil for a moment.

"Sources from inside the village say he had a breakdown of some sort and hasn't been the same since. There are reports that his training schedule is unusually light and he's taken less guard shifts. He's no longer the threat he once was. The same can be said about the Hyuuga clan, which was completely wiped out except for a couple of children." Kankurou nodded and continued writing.

"What about Akatsuki?" He asked, looking up while his hand continued to move. "You said you had more information on their intentions?"

"Rumours are floating about that Akatsuki is not too thrilled about our handling of this war. They feel that we should be working harder to win this war. They believe that you are not doing your job properly."

"Such an opinion is not theirs to make." Kankurou put in. There was a pause in his advisors' information, but it didn't last long.

"They have been training none stop, and feel our shinobi should be doing the same. I've made sure the teams have started working hard to prepare for another strike in the near future. I'm only worried about that assassin group." Kankurou nodded, signalling him to explain and continued to jot down the notes. Another man continued where the first had left off.

"We're afraid that they might abandon their alliance with us once they've gotten the demon they're looking for."

"They signed a contract with us, though." Kankurou interjected, but was silenced with a glare.

"They're criminals, Kazekage-sama. Such political claims as contracts don't apply to people like them."

"Well, what would you have me do about it then?"

"We only ask that you watch what decisions you make, to ensure we don't upset them. I don't think we want to lose our allies this close to our victory. If we lose Akatsuki, we could very well lose this war."

Kankurou frowned and wrote his advisor's words down on his little pad of paper.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"This war isn't turning out the way I thought it would." Itachi exclaimed, placing his hands behind his head, relaxing under the night sky. He tried and failed to stifle a deep yawn and shifted to make himself a little more comfortable on the cold roof.

"How did you think things were going to go?" Gaara replied. He was quite comfortable in his spot on the roof, lying in a protective bed of sand. Itachi smirked at the younger man's actions, turning his head slightly to give him a once over.

"I had no real expectations, but I did think that it would have been less politics and more actual fighting." He replied. "This talking is a load of bullshit."

"Not all wars are about the fighting."

"Maybe they should be. Things would go faster; life would go on faster afterwards."

"The way you put it makes you sound like some kind of saint." Itachi shook his head, closing his eyes to the stars that twinkled above them.

"I've got too much blood on my hands to be a saint." He replied. "Too many people killed. I would rather achieve my goals than be considered some kind of good person. I do what is necessary to get what I want, especially killing."

"Is that why you joined Akatsuki?" Gaara raised his hand to the sky and mimicked crushing the tiny lights in his fist, the sand shifting with his movements.

"No." The question was dropped after that, the finality in Itachi's voice more than enough to signal the end of that topic.

"Why did you come to me?" Gaara asked, hoping to at least get answers to more reasonable questions.

"For this alliance?" He looked over and saw the younger man nodding his head. "I recognised in you some of the things I agreed with." There was a comfortable silence for a long moment as they both processed this information.

"I'm a demon."

"No you aren't, Sabaku no Gaara. You're close to one, but you aren't really."

"If I'm close then what does that make Naruto?" Gaara asked, sighing to himself. "I assume you still haven't told them that their quest for his demon is pointless."

"Let the idiots figure that out on their own."

"Were you there when they were fused together?" The red-haired man sat up and crossed his legs underneath himself, the sand disappearing into the gourd on his back. Itachi shrugged noncommittally.

"I saw what happened, but I wasn't actually present when the Hokage woman performed the seal." He looked to Gaara, slightly curious as to why he was asking about Naruto.

"Did it hurt him?" Itachi nodded again, solemnly and turned his gaze back to the sky.

"He screamed and I thought my dead ancestors were going to rise from their graves all the way in Konohagakure." He chuckled at the mental image that provided. "I thought they were both going to pass out from the pain, but then it was over and he opened his eyes on his own again. The demon was no longer separate from him. He'd become the demon and the demon had become him." Gaara nodded, seeming to get the answers he was looking for. Itachi was about to ask him why he wanted to know, but decided against it, opting to enjoy the last bit of silence they might ever have.

"If he can be saved, why can't I?" The older man turned to him at the sudden question and he offered the young man a sincere smile.

"Who says you can't?"

(End of Chapter)

Something I've been a little depressed about it the whole Naruto Fanfiction Awards… I could have won too… but the voting ends tomorrow, so there's virtually no chance I'll ever win against Skinless in the Action/Adventure Category. Bah…

But I'm still encouraging people to go over to the website and vote… even if it's not for this story, I want to see more votes… If you think a story is really good, don't just tell the author, go over and vote!

To Miranda Ocean: Well… the reason I put myself down so much is… I know I could probably do better, and there are stories out there that are millions of times better than this thing is.

To The Spore Whore: Eheh… not bathing… I'm soooo flattered… I don't think anyone's confessed that much love for me yet… heh… As for Itachi… He's going to have a bigger part from now on…

GAH! GO VOTE!

(The website is in my profile... because ff.n is being a bitch... again...)

Note: This chapter is subject to edits…


	64. The Difference Between You and Me

It's a long chapter so I have something quick to say before you read. One of my reviewers mentioned a long time ago that they felt Naruto had gotten too weak, and I had been feeling the same sentiments long before they brought up their points. So as a result, things have been sped up a little more and… well… things happen that weren't supposed to happen for another few chapters.

Go read now.

Chapter Title: 64. The Difference Between You and Me

With the sunlight streaming through the open window, Naruto could almost have been made to believe that life was perfect. Although he was lying in a slightly uncomfortable position on the floor, he was surrounded by warmth and even the weather outside made him feel safe. Outside his window, the sounds of chirping birds on the branches of the tree had startled him from his quiet slumber, but the warmth made him want to stay in that place between reality and dreams, and he was content to just pretend he was still asleep. He didn't want to face things just yet, though he could tell from the breathing underneath him that Sasuke was also awake, and probably had been for some time.

"I like waking up beside you," Sasuke mumbled when he figured they'd had enough time faking sleep. "If only the circumstances had been different." Naruto could feel Sasuke's gaze on his lax form move to the painted walls and he could feel his fingers start to tense up at the reminder. "Why do things have to be this way? Why does there have to be wars that leave behind such awful scars?" Naruto was silent, afraid of the answers that would come from exploring those questions. "I just want to grow old with someone I love, not worrying if they're going to be there in the morning when I wake up. Wouldn't you like that?" Naruto clenched his fist against Sasuke's stomach, staring at the painful scars that wouldn't go away this time. He had been wondering if there would come a time when the wounds did not heal. One wrist had finished healing, but was still an angry irritated red beneath the dried blood stains, while the other one was still bleeding. All the minor cuts had healed without error, but these two well worn paths had become too used to ever heal properly. He sighed and unclenched his fists, letting his fingers slowly glide along the dark blue vest his rival wore. He was almost sorry to see the blood from his second wrist begin to leave a stain on the once-clean shirt.

"Impossible dreams," Naruto whispered softly, though he knew Sasuke heard him.

"Not impossible, just improbable." The older man smiled sadly. His eyes took in the names written on the wall and he had to physically fight off the need to flinch. There were so many names he knew, so many people he had known. He looked down at the messy blonde hair lying in his lap and sighed. "Let's get you cleaned up and ready for the day." He sat up slowly, taking note of the unhealed wounds.

"I don't need you talking to me like I'm a child," Naruto snapped, pushing himself away from his best friend and standing up slowly. He braced a hand on the once white wall while he caught his bearings. Sasuke stood up as well, walking slowly to the door, trying to keep his eyes from the bloody walls as much as possible. He hesitated when he didn't hear Naruto following.

The blond was still for a few moments, before he realised that his hand braced against the wall was covering up half of the characters that made up Umino Iruka's name, he could still feel the drying blood beneath his fingertips. He gasped and ripped his hand from the wall as though it had been burned, but his legs weren't strong enough to support him and he was sent crashing to the floor again, cursing colourfully.

"Are you okay?" Sasuke asked quickly, dropping to his friend's side. The sudden worry earned him a glare, which he was quick to ignore. "You lost a lot of blood last night. I'm not surprised you're a little weak this morning."

"I'M NOT WEAK!" Naruto screamed, throwing a punch at the arm that was attempting to help him back to his feet. "I was just a bit dizzy, I don't need help." He pulled himself back to his feet and, though he was still a little shaky he didn't fall down a second time. He could tell that Sasuke wanted to say something to him, but he pushed past the young man and headed to the bathroom in silence.

Pulling a package of bandages and a bit of gauze out of the cabinet under the sink, Naruto began trying to clean up his wounds.

"Let me," Sasuke said, taking the package from his friend's hands. "You're just getting blood all over the place, dobe," he explained himself forcefully, but the nickname was whispered under his breath. Naruto glared at him for his intrusion, but the look faltered when he caught the name. He turned his head to the side and held out his injured arm, his bottom lip stuck out in a pout. They sat on the bathroom floor in an awkward silence for a few moments until the wound had been properly sterilized and wrapped.

"I don't suppose there's much I could do to make sure you never did that to yourself again. You scared me last night." Sasuke looked up at Naruto when the silence became too much for him. "Is there anything I can do or say that would make this stop?"

"No." Naruto's tone was firm, trying to leave no room for negotiations.

"I would offer free ramen for the rest of your life, or your choice in any girl you want, or anything you asked for, but it isn't enough, is it? It's all just superficial meaningless stuff." He sighed and stood from his crouch on the floor. "I wonder if there ever could be a price high enough to convince you to stop hurting yourself. I know those names represent the dead, but there are other ways to remember, other ways to punish yourself, even though none of it is your fault."

"It is!" Naruto exclaimed, standing as well. He shoved Sasuke into the bathroom wall, out of his way and stalked out of the small room. He paused when he passed the room they'd slept in the previous night and slammed the door closed and sealing it tightly. No one else would ever see beyond that door. "That blood is so insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but I have nothing else to give." He turned around to find that Sasuke was nowhere to be seen. From a distance, he heard his friend shouting to him from his bedroom.

"Can I borrow a shirt and some shorts?"

"Whatever," Naruto muttered, walking slowly into his own room to find that Sasuke had already pulled on a clean white shirt with a small red spiral on the front, not bothering to wait for an answer. He jumped slightly at Naruto's entrance, but after a little staring, he continued looking for bottoms as though he wasn't aware he was only in his boxers. Naruto stared at the shirt for a moment before recognising the garment from his childhood and was surprised to see it fit his rival without a problem and even looked a little loose on him. "Please don't make me do anything I don't want to do." He whispered softly as Sasuke pulled up a pair of navy shorts he found. Randomly, he hoped it was clean, but knew that Sasuke had a knack for telling the difference between Naruto's clean clothing and his dirty stuff. Sasuke gave him a pitiful look.

"It's sad that you seem to want to mutilate yourself," he replied, walking past the blond and out of the bedroom.

"You don't understand!" Naruto exclaimed, grabbing a hold of the other man's arm as he passed. Sasuke seemed to have expected the move and spun right around from the force, claiming Naruto's lips in an explosive and aggressive kiss. When they parted, he looked furious.

"No, it's you who doesn't understand," he spat at his friend. "I would do anything for you. I'd give you anything. Tell me what you want!"

"I want… you're my best friend…" Sasuke smiled softly, almost cryptically, and nodded. "You do things to me." If it weren't for the severity of the situation, he might have poked fun at the words coming from Naruto's mouth. As it was, he'd found a bargaining chip in his friend's need for a companion. He didn't say a word, only walked away from the blonde. He didn't stop till he had walked into the kitchen and, sure that Naruto had followed him, pulled a sharp knife from the rack, dragging the blade across his wrist. He was faintly aware of Naruto's startled scream through the haze of pain the action caused as well as the searing pain that shot across his back as the curse seal reacted to the knife wound.

"You're my best friend, too," he replied, watching the deep red liquid fall to the floor like teardrops. He looked up to see that his rival had frozen in his spot and smiled weakly. "I can't stop you from doing it again, but if I ever find out you cut yourself again, I'll do the same."

"No," Naruto whimpered and stumbled backwards until his back hit the nearest wall and, his eyes still trapped by the sight of flowing blood, he slid down to the floor. "Please, no."

"Don't do it again," Sasuke demanded, grabbing a towel to wrap around his wound till he could pull out the spare bandages he'd shoved in his pocket. "I should go; I have to do a little bit of patrolling this morning."

"Don't go," Naruto whispered. "I need…"

"But you don't need me," Sasuke interrupted. "You know this, don't you? You need to suffer through this thing on your own. That's it, isn't it? You need to prove that you CAN do this on your own. That's why we stopped…" He trailed off, knowing he didn't have to say the whole sentence. Naruto was staring at him in a stunned silence until Sasuke's words set in.

He paused at the door to the blonde's apartment and raised a finger to the clean, white door frame. Running his finger down the clean, bloodless strip of white, he closed his eyes and walked out.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Taking a deep breath, Sasuke continued walking until Naruto's building was completely out of sight. He turned back and sighed when the building was finally far enough away. For a while now Sasuke knew he would have to take a backseat to Naruto's problems, though the idea was still hard to stomach, even after he'd accepted it. He was confused himself, and knew that his uncertainty would just serve to hinder his friend's self discovery and healing.

He growled under his breath, not noticing the people who were starting to stare at him, and shook the thoughts from his mind. Thinking about something he couldn't do anything about was going to get him nowhere. He thought about the curse seal and the close call he'd nearly had in Naruto's bedroom. He hadn't heard the blonde walk in on him while he was changing and had worried for a moment that his rival had seen the overly large bandage that was covering the seal, but he took a second to analyse the young man's face, noticing that there was no change in the features. He'd seen nothing.

Sasuke carefully touched the spot on his neck where he knew the origins of the curse seal resided and winced as though there were real pain. It felt no different from any other part of his body except for the constant warm throbbing, almost as though his pulse was much too close to the surface. The bandage itself was merely there as a means to cover the disgusting marks on his neck, and the doctor had encouraged him to remove the cloth, but both him and Kakashi believed it would be best for everyone involved that he kept the shock of the curse as hidden as possible, and so far no one had asked any questions.

Sasuke was terrified of the subject being brought up in his conversations with Naruto. Until he had all the answers, he didn't want to explain what was going on, even though he knew he was being slightly hypocritical with his friend. Things were just different for him. Not that he could tell Naruto that. What would he say?

'Hi, I'm being eaten by a dead man's curse!' He shook his head at the different reactions he could see Naruto going through. Not only was the possible attention unwanted, the curse seal also posed a danger to those he was close to if he ever lost control of it. He didn't understand why the mark was starting to act up, but until he knew for sure, he wasn't going to take any chances. Who knew what would trigger his next attack?

He was quickly reminded of Kakashi's earlier words about finding someone with connections to Orochimaru, but the snake had been dead for years and anyone who had been formerly affiliated with him was either long gone, or dead.

"Who else would know?" he muttered to himself, but his musings were thrown from his mind when he realised he was in the heart of the little village, where all the festival stands and lanterns were being taken down. Some were being thrown out while other decorations were placed carefully into boxes and put into storage for later use. He nodded politely to one man who was in the process of taking down a large sale banner from the front of his shop. Sasuke quickly offered his services by holding steady the rickety ladder.

"Thanks, boy." Though Sasuke was no longer a boy, he nodded at the gratitude and opted to not correct the man. "Last night was amazing, wasn't it?" The man began a conversation with the ninja. Sasuke looked up and thought for a moment.

"I wouldn't call it amazing." The villager laughed at his stern response and muttered "shinobi" under his breath, shaking his head and chuckling to himself.

"Well I thought it was a wise move on Godaime's part," he continued. "It brought up everyone's spirits. It allowed people to just be themselves." Sasuke frowned at the last part and thought back to how Naruto had acted last night. He hoped that wasn't Naruto's true self. "It helped the villagers forget the wars for a moment in time and live in peace. Even if it's for a moment, something like that can do wonders for everyone's morals."

"I don't know that it helped," Sasuke replied.

"No, you probably wouldn't see it from our perspective." The man chuckled again, taking no offence to Sasuke's rough attitude. "You were probably uncomfortable at last night's festivities. I don't blame you. You live the life of a shinobi, but I do wish you had been allowed to grow up."

"What do you mean?" Sasuke looked up at the man again, noticing that the banner was now folded neatly in his hands.

"You were trained to kill at such a young age," he explained. "You never had a chance to cut school to hang out with your buddies. You never had the time to take in a movie with your second girlfriend that week. And I'll bet you've never snuck away from the whole world to make love under the moonlight." Sasuke blushed at the words, but the man was caught up in his memories. "Everyone knows the shinobi clans marry for lineage. No one has time to court anyone. You poor young children have no time to fall in love. It's a wonder you've survived this long." He offered Sasuke an apologetic smile and climbed back down the ladder, thanking Sasuke for his help.

"I don't think you know as much as you think about us shinobi," Sasuke exclaimed just as he'd finished putting away the ladder. He'd given the man's words a lot of thought as they tidied up. The old man paused in his inventory list and looked up to the young man in his doorway.

"Oh?"

"We have friends we hang out with," Sasuke continued. "We may not play in the park every day like the other children, but we experience the things just as wonderful, and just as painful. You say no shinobi marry for love, but I know a great ninja who drank himself almost to death when he lost his wife, because he loved her so much."

"Do you mean Nara Shikato?" the villager asked. He'd obviously seen Shikamaru's father around in the bars. Sasuke neither confirmed nor denied the name, just continued.

"And while I've never made love under the moonlight, I do know the ecstasy of making love with someone you would give up everything to. I know what it's like to sit with that person under a starry sky and count the tiny pinpricks of light until we've counted the same star a thousand times. I know what it's like to hold that person in my arms when their pain becomes unbearable and never want to let them go." He turned to the door, about to leave when he hesitated, looking over his shoulder one last time. "If that's not what it's like to be in love, then I guess you were right about at least one thing," he exclaimed to the man in words he would deny to himself later and walked out of the shop, heading to another festival stall in the process of being taken down. He offered the family some more help.

For a while, Sasuke worked undisturbed, but he paused in wrapping up a light cable when he heard his name called. He was about to continue his work when he heard it again, closer. He turned around and found Ino rushing up to him, her face pinched tight from lack of sleep or worry, or both. He waited patiently, continuing to roll the cable around his arm, for her to catch her breath and explain why she'd called out to him.

"It's Sakura," she exclaimed after a moment. He raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. "She refuses to leave her room."

"And? What do you expect me to be able to do about this?" Sasuke asked, politely. Ino frowned, but didn't give up trying.

"She's still trying to cope with the loss of her family," she explained, desperation evident in her pleading voice. "You're her team mate, her friend. You and Naruto. You can both talk to her. Help her through this."

"What kind of difference can we do for her if her own best friend can't get through to her?"

"You and Naruto understand her pain," Ino replied, though it was obvious the Uchiha massacre wasn't something she wanted to elaborate on. "You know what it's like to be an orphan, to be without the people you love. Please, just come and offer a little support. We're the last people she has left to hold onto."

"I'll come, but just for a few moments," Sasuke finally agreed after thinking it over in his head. He wasn't sure if he could convince Naruto to come with him, he wasn't even sure they should be in the same room while Naruto was sensitive about people who'd died in the war, but he would at least talk to the man.

"Thank you, Sasuke-kun." Ino hugged him, wiping tears from her eyes. Sasuke's body went tense at the touch but the blonde girl ignored the feeling of rejection.

"I'm not making any promises about Naruto though," He added. She nodded and smiled, taking a step back. "He's not doing so well either through this war."

"I heard about Iruka-sensei." She lowered her head in respect of the dead man who used to be their teacher. Sasuke wanted to correct her and explain that Iruka was only a tiny part of it, but didn't have it in him to explain the inner workings of his best friend's mind to someone who was an outsider. Ino had nothing to do with it.

"I'll be at her house in half an hour, with or without Naruto," he said and headed back to the apartment from which he'd started his day.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Naruto sat in his apartment staring at his closed front door for a few minutes before common sense kicked in and told him Sasuke wasn't going to come back. He should have been happy. It was what he wanted; to do things on his own, but for some reason the only thing he wanted at the moment was to have Sasuke walk back into his life. Shaking his head, Naruto cursed himself.

"You're dumber than Sasuke thinks you are, idiot," he muttered to himself, going into the kitchen and pulling out a bowl and a pair of wooden chopsticks. He shoved them hastily onto the table and poured himself a glass of milk. It wasn't until he was putting the carton back in the fridge that he realised how little clothing he had been wearing.

Boxers.

He looked down at his bare chest and found it littered with dried patches of blood. He must have been quite a mess for Sasuke to find. That thought sobered Naruto and soured his mood a little bit more. The last thing he wanted to do was become a burden on yet another person's life, but this time he hadn't imposed on anyone. This time he'd done it without even leaving the comfort of his own home.

"Asshole," Naruto muttered, shoving the glass of milk out of his way for the moment. He was trying to keep as much milk for as long as possible to cut down on his trips to the market. He would leave the glass till he'd made his ramen breakfast and he would leave that until he'd finished getting dressed.

He headed to his bedroom for some clothes, his stride only hesitating for a moment as he passed the locked white door, but he didn't turn to look at it. It was bad enough that his mind wouldn't let go of the events of that night; he didn't need visual reminders as well. All he could think about since Sasuke left was the feeling of his arms wrapped around him as the older man made promises they both knew he couldn't keep. He just couldn't allow himself to be weak anymore. What kind of future would he have if he depended on everyone else? The Hokage didn't do it, so neither would he.

He pulled a washcloth from the linen closet and held it under the cold water for a moment. He knew warm water got rid of the blood faster, but he needed the kick of the ice water to wake him up a little bit more. When his torso was relatively clean, he quickly ducked under the showerhead to rinse off the parts of his body he might have missed, holding his bandaged arm in the air above the hot mist. He didn't want to have wasted Sasuke's work.

When he stepped out of the shower, he stared at the white fabric covering his wrist and was surprised at the obvious care Sasuke had taken to making sure it was secure and tight and allowed him to heal in the fastest way possible. He shook all thoughts from his head, towel-drying his hair and heading to his bedroom quickly to find a relatively clean pair of shorts and a shirt.

It took him a full ten minutes to finally realize that Sasuke had taken his last clean shirt and shorts. Everything else was either too dirty, or too sliced up to wear in public. He swore under his breath and punched the wall in frustration. This was obviously not a good start to a day. He looked down at his wrists, but shook his head; he'd made a promise to himself.

Pulling on the cleanest shorts he had, Naruto went back down the hall to see if anything had been left at his door. Every so often the lady down the hall would leave him her newspaper. He appreciated the gesture, and looked forward to the small act of kindness every week. He pulled back the door, only to be assaulted by said paper being flung in his face by an angry neighbour. It wasn't the nice lady, but the man who lived next to him.

"What was that for?" Naruto asked quietly, his voice rumbling deep within his chest. He'd caught the paper before it fell, but it was flung quite hard at him and his face now stung.

"I can't believe you would even show your face around the village after the things you've done to us, demon," the man snarled. Naruto's grip tightened and his sharp nails dug into the paper, shredding it slightly, but he said nothing. "I saw Uchiha-san leaving here this morning. You should stop corrupting the best people of this village if you know what's best for you." He sneered when he noticed the nearly destroyed paper in the blonde man's hands. "If you don't keep that demon under control, the village might be forced to do something about it."

"I don't need your warnings."

"I think you do," the man replied, not at all afraid of the warning he heard in the younger man's voice. "Could you imagine what would happen to Sasuke if you were to get angry with him? Your sharp claws would pierce his flesh like that paper. Do you think we're going to just sit back while you corrupt and endanger his life?"

"Sasuke can think and act for himself," Naruto shot back, squeezing one hand into a fist at his side to keep from taking his anger out on the man in front of him. "You and the rest of the village need to stop coddling him. He's not a child anymore. He can protect himself from the demon." He turned around and slammed the door in his neighbour's face, throwing the paper at the nearest object, a lamp, which proceeded to shatter from the force. He cursed colourfully under his breath, but ignored the broken glass.

Stepping into the kitchen, he began pulling out the pot and water needed for his ramen breakfast, however, when he began looking for a package of the stuff all he was met with was empty cupboards. His searching became frantic when even his secret stash was missing. He'd used up the last of it two nights earlier and hadn't found the time nor will to want to leave his apartment to go shopping. Things weren't going his way, but at least he wasn't left with nothing for his grumbling tummy.

Slamming the last cupboard door closed, he reached for his lonely glass of milk, but paused when a familiar scent wafted up into his nostrils. His face became scrunched up and he tossed the rotten milk into the sink, satisfied at the tinkling of the shattered glass.

"AHHHHH!" he yelled, slamming his fist into the counter top. No clothing, no ramen, bad milk, the horrible run in with his neighbour. They were all signs he was not supposed to live through the night. He looked down at his wrist again, remembering how Sasuke bandaged him up. He had still been bleeding. He reached for a knife, intending to take his anger out on his arm, but his fingers faltered and the blade clattered to the counter top at the sound of someone clearing their throat behind him. Without turning around, Naruto knew that it's Sasuke. "What are you doing here?" he asked softly, unsure if any sound made it past the thundering of his heartbeat in his ears. He whirled around to see his rival and was stunned by what he saw.

"What did you think you were going to do with that knife?" Sasuke retorted, keeping his own kunai pressed against a bandaged wrist. "Don't make me follow you down that path." He whispered, the hand holding the kunai shaking slightly. Naruto took a step backwards, his hand fumbling for the knife while he kept his gaze locked on the tall form in front of him. When he felt his fingers close around the handle, he let out an outraged cry and hurled the object at his friend. The knife embedded itself in the wall, inches from Sasuke's head, but neither boy flinched at the impact.

"I shouldn't have lived," Naruto exclaimed, his knees wobbling until he couldn't stand any longer. He slid down the cabinet to sit on the floor, his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do to make things like they used to be." He heard Sasuke drop the kunai to the floor and walk slowly towards the blonde.

"What do you want?" Sasuke asked. Naruto looked up into his best friend's eyes. It was an ordinary question, but one he didn't know how to answer. He remained silent, avoiding and then forgetting the question. Sasuke sat down beside him.

"How long were you standing behind me?"

"Long enough."

"That's no answer." But Naruto knew the truth. He hadn't locked his front door after the confrontation with his neighbour.

"He shouldn't have said those things to you."

"Was he right?"

"About what?" Sasuke turned to look at the blonde. He'd heard everything the man had said to Naruto.

"About me corrupting you." Sasuke laughed at the question, ignoring the seriousness of the whole thing. The last thing Naruto needed was a serious talk.

"Oh, you've corrupted me alright." He smirked and jostled the blonde's shoulder with his own playfully. Naruto looked up and saw the humour in his friend's eyes, though none of it was reflected in his own. His anger and frustration began to slowly dissipate. "But I'm far too gone to care right now."

"You don't care that I could kill you with my bare hands?" Sasuke snorted at the question.

"You couldn't even if you tried." He laid his head on Naruto's shoulder. "You were more right than him, though. I'm my own person. I can't have people I don't even know trying to protect me from something I don't want to be protected from."

"But I–"

"No," Sasuke interrupted. "If I didn't want to be with you, I would have left the village years ago. Or did you forget it was you who brought me back? And as much as you may not want to believe it, only you're keeping me here." He sighed. "I'm not leaving you."

"Thank you," Naruto whispered back, letting his cheek rest on the soft ebony hair. He was content to stay on the floor with Sasuke until he was reminded that Sasuke had to have come back for a reason. He asked.

"Sakura's having problems dealing with…" Sasuke trailed off, both of them understanding what he wasn't saying. "Ino says no one is getting through to her to help her get over her grief. She wants us to try."

"You can't force someone to stop grieving."

"I know, but she seems to think we can help her with her grief, lend our support."

"I don't know how much help I could be." Sasuke sat up for a moment, turning to his friend as their conversation took a different turn.

"No one but us understands what she's going through. We're the only friends she has who understand what it's like to lose everything you hold precious in a moment." Naruto frowned at Sasuke pointedly and shifted uncomfortably on the cold tiled floor.

"You lost your entire clan. She lost her parents. It's understandable for you two to be together right now, but I've lost nothing. I never had parents or a family." Sasuke glared, gritting his teeth from saying anything that couldn't be taken back.

"So the was Iruka nothing but a teacher to you?" he hissed between his teeth. "Am I nothing but a team mate? Sakura? Or did you lie to me when you said he was like a big brother to you?" Naruto flinched at Iruka's name, and tried to explain, but nothing sounded right to his ears. "Now that her parents are gone, we're all she has left."

"You won't take no for an answer, will you?" Naruto smiled sadly and stood up from the floor. Sasuke followed suit and looked around the destroyed apartment.

"How about I make you a deal?" Sasuke exclaimed, watching Naruto rush to his room to find a shirt that wasn't wrinkled or damaged too much.

"Yeah?"

"I'll take you out for breakfast and then we can quickly stop by my house to get you some clean clothing." He smiled to himself when he heard cheering coming from the room and a ball of black rushed at him and into his arms.

"You're the best!" Naruto laughed, enveloping his friend in a tight hug and showering him with sloppy kisses.

"But you and I are cleaning this place up when we're finished with Sakura. Shopping and a load of laundry."

"Yes, mother."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Sasuke knocked twice on the wooden door. They had quickly gotten a bowl each of ramen and Naruto pulled on the first things Sasuke tossed at him. It was killing Sasuke not to slam his fist over the blonde man's head at the moment, though. The entire way over, Naruto had been fidgeting in his clothing, pulling the hem of the shirt down and trying to straighten out the shorts.

"Will you stop?" he finally ground out, grabbing one of the offending hands. "You are being a nuisance and you're going to stretch it." Naruto shot him a glare.

"It's not my fault," he muttered. "How can you wear clothes like this? I feel like I'm wearing a smaller person's skin."

"And you're blaming your weight problem on me and my clothing?" The younger man shot him a withering stare and stuck his tongue out, holding the small strip of skin that showed beneath the black tank top. He was self conscious about the little amount of fat he had that covered his abs. It was nothing outrageous, but he hated it none the less.

"I am not fat," he hissed in return. "You're just petite." Sasuke allowed the comment to slide for more pressing matters. He could hear Ino calling from upstairs that she would be at the door in a second, giving them very little time to keep talking. Sasuke turned with his back to the door and gave his rival a pointed stare.

"You can do this, you know," he exclaimed, nodding his head to the door behind him, knowing that Naruto was still fighting with himself in his head.

"I'm scared." Sasuke smiled and nodded, taking the man's face in his hands and kissed him soundly. It was meant to be something of support, but it turned out to mean much more to both men. It might have become something more heated if the lock to the door hadn't clicked open. The door opened, revealing Ino's head, looking extremely relieved to see them and completely oblivious to what had happened on the front step.

"Come in." She ushered them inside and shut the door, leading the way back upstairs to where Sakura was currently locked inside her room. Sasuke leaned closer to his best friend as they made their way up the stairs and gave the blonde's hand a quick reassuring squeeze. Naruto gave him a quick smile.

"I'll be your walking stick," Sasuke whispered so only Naruto could hear, but they had reached their team mate's door before he could properly ask the meaning behind the words. He shot his rival a questioning glance, and turned his attention on the scene before them.

It shouldn't have startled them, but they were both surprised to find so many people hanging around outside Sakura's bedroom door, trying to convince her to come out and talk to them. Lee was in the middle of pounding furiously on the door, shouting at her to let him in and help her restore the flower of her youth.

"You'll wilt away to nothing if you don't let us help you," he exclaimed. "We're your friends; we'll support you no matter what blows our way." Ino sighed and sat down beside Shikamaru on the floor. Beside those three, Hinata and her cousin were also standing outside the pink-haired girl's room.

"She won't let anyone inside." Ino spoke quietly to the two newcomers.

"Is the door locked?" Sasuke asked, but Ino shook her head.

"No one wants to go inside anymore because they're afraid of her," she answered. "She's been attacking anyone who sets foot in her room, but she won't say anything except yelling at us to get out and leave her alone." She looked desperate. "I'm running out of ideas."

"Please, Sakura-chan, we only want to help you," Hinata called to the girl, but there was no response. "Please don't shut us out."

"It's not working," Sasuke remarked dryly. Naruto dug his elbow into the man's side and stepped forward.

"Sakura-chan, it's Naruto," he called softly. All that greeted his words were the soft sounds of sobbing. He turned to the rest of the group. "I don't think you're helping anything by waiting outside her room like vultures. You're scaring her off. I'm going to take my chances and go inside. There's only so much comfort you can offer through the wood of a door. Maybe you should go home and rest a little bit. Who knows when the war may start up again?" Sasuke followed behind him, not saying a word, but obviously not planning on leaving. They would go inside together.

"Go home," Sasuke said pointedly as they entered the darkened room. He made sure they had gone down the stairs before shutting the door behind him and turning to take in the disaster that used to be Sakura's room.

The girl herself was sitting huddled on her bed, knees to her chest. Her lithe frame was shaking from repressed sobs and she was slowly rocking back and forth.

"Go home," she whispered, barely audible to the men. "You're not going to get any farther than they did, and I don't want to hurt you." She didn't even spare them a glance. Naruto frowned at the dismissal, but didn't back down. He took a step closer and tried to explain himself.

"Sakura, we're here to-" But he was interrupted by a punch to the gut. Sakura had lunged forward throwing power punches and the like at her closest target, Naruto. Sasuke was about to rush forward to help his friend, but a look from the blonde told him not to come any closer. It took no more than a minute for the punching, kicking and scratching to subside into hugging and tears. Sakura clung limply to Naruto's solid frame, her grip on his neck so tight he feared she might snap it. He felt something wet and warm seep through the fabric of Sasuke's shirt at his neck and knew at once the girl was crying.

"Shh…" he whispered, bringing a hand up to stroke her hair and pat her back. "It's okay, to cry, we're here for you." They slowly moved her back to the bed to sit down and talk. Sasuke followed, but stayed away from the bed, preferring to stand against the wall.

"They don't understand," she said into Naruto's shirt. "I just want to disappear to a place the pain can't follow." The blonde gave her a pained look and nodded, allowing her to slowly leave his comforting embrace. "Everything I see here reminds me of them, and I just want to let go."

"It's hard dealing with the home they raised you in, isn't it?" Sasuke spoke softly. Sakura looked up at him and nodded slowly, wiping away some of the tears from her cheeks. "To have to live in a place where you expect to see them around every corner."

"I keep hearing their voices," she agreed with him. "I don't know how to make the delusions stop." She looked pleadingly at Sasuke for advice and suddenly Naruto was the one feeling inadequate. He didn't really know what it was like to feel that way. He lost Iruka in a war, and though they were close, Iruka wasn't someone Naruto saw every single day and where Sasuke had felt uncomfortable trying to comfort Sakura when he had already escaped that pain, Naruto had never felt it to begin with.

"I would offer one of the Uchiha residences to you, but you would only be running from your pain. You need to stop yourself and confront your grief. Stop trying to forget about everything you shared with your parents, because it's not going to work and it's not going to help either. Do you think they would want you to forget them?" Sakura shook her head. "In order to get past the pain you feel, you need to accept what has happened and allow it to change you for the better. They're still watching over you."

"I don't know how," she whispered, staring at her feet.

"Lean on us," Naruto piped up, still feeling left out, but not letting that get in the way of comforting his friend. "We're still alive." He could feel the sharp look Sasuke had shot him, but he knew there was something that needed to be out in the open.

"But we're soldiers for the village, any day we could be killed and if I start relying on you, I'll just get hurt again." Inwardly, Naruto was proud of that confession, knowing it needed to be confronted. She was afraid for the wrong reasons.

"But that's the difference, we are soldiers," Naruto explained. "We can fight and protect ourselves. We can protect our families. You're our family." He gestured to himself and Sasuke. "There's Ino and Hinata, Kiba, Neji, and Lee. They all want to help you and protect you. Just think of them as extended family. You don't need to be connected by blood to be family."

"But they're suffering through so much as well." He knew she was thinking about Hinata and Neji.

"Which means you can cope with these tragedies together." She looked from Naruto to Sasuke and smiled at their expressions.

"I guess you guys are too stubborn to let me try and run away."

"We just know the results of running away," Sasuke explained and moved closer to the pink-haired girl. "It's not a road you should be forced upon."

"What happened to make you run, anyways?" Naruto asked, giving her a curious look. She looked between them before sighing. Eventually they would figure it out or learn what happened from someone else.

"I was at a booth and out of nowhere I was drowning in memories of when my parents used to take me to those booths as a little girl. I just wanted to break down right in the middle of the street, but everyone was supposed to be having fun. I couldn't deal with it all." They both nodded in understanding and suddenly Sasuke stepped forward and wrapped his arms around the girl, who promptly began sobbing again on his shoulder, tears soaking into the borrowed shirt. "When does the hurting stop?" she whispered the question into Sasuke's neck.

"Never," he replied strongly, staring straight at Naruto, still sitting on their friend's bed. "But we'll always be there for you. Naruto and I. If you come to us, I promise you you'll never have to put up your defences when you're with us. Cry, laugh, break things; we'll never judge you or hold it against you, only be there to support you. The one place you don't need to be strong." The entire time Sasuke was talking to Sakura, his eyes were locked with the blonde's, the meaning not lost on his rival. 'Stop hiding from me.' He mouthed, giving the man a pleading look.

"Y-you have no idea how worried Ino was about you," Naruto exclaimed, stumbling on his words, a blush shooting across his cheeks. "You heard Lee pounding on your door, didn't you? We're just all worried for you."

"Thank you for being there for me," she exclaimed, stepping back from the embrace, though everyone saw how reluctant she was to drop her arms from Sasuke's shoulders.

"Thank Ino," Sasuke said. "She's the one who told us what was happening."

"You're not going to hole yourself up in this room if you get scared again?" She chuckled lightly and wiped her face, shaking her head.

"No."

"Then let's go downstairs, I can guarantee Ino and Lee didn't leave, no matter what Sasuke told them."

(Star)(Star)(Star)

"Why didn't you tell me about it?"

"It wasn't important at the time, you were comforting Sakura."

"You were bleeding!"

"So?" Naruto asked, clutching the now bloody bandage to his chest protectively, giving his friend a wounded look. "It's a flesh wound, it'll heal eventually."

"It needs to be bandaged again!"

"It's fine!" Naruto yelled, jumping back when Sasuke tried to reach for it again.

"Why are you being so stubborn about it?"

"Because you freaked out and lunged at me when you noticed it, making it hurt more than it already did."

"It's hurting you!"

"You make such a big deal out of everything, stop acting like a mother. I never grew up with one, so I don't think I need one."

"You're being a stupid asshole." Sasuke frowned, eyeing the appendage in frustration. "Come with me, now," he ground out through his teeth, grabbing hold of the unwounded arm and began dragging the blonde in the direction of his house to get fixed up again.

"You're a sadist," Naruto muttered under his breath. "You just want to see me writhing in pain from that stupid ointment you use."

"It works."

"It hurts." They marched on in silence for a moment before something dawned on Naruto. "I'm not going to die from this, you know." Almost at once, Sasuke stopped walking and whirled around, slamming his fist into Naruto's jaw. It was then that he saw the look of pain dancing beneath the red eyes.

"I don't care," came the frustrated reply. "I'm not letting go of you ever. Whether it's a paper cut or you have your leg chopped off, I'm going to whatever it takes to heal you. I want you to be sane and whole when we finally come out of this war."

"What we want and what we get are completely different things, bastard."

"Stop making things harder than they have to be." Sasuke continued walking; they were nearly at the Uchiha houses. It wasn't until they were standing in front of the large painted door waiting for Sasuke to finish unlocking the door that Naruto began to struggle against his rival's hold on his wrist again.

"Let me go before I break your fingers," he hissed angrily.

"No," Sasuke stated simply, choosing to ignore the warning in his friend's voice. He pulled the blonde into the house and towards the main floor bathroom. He'd kept the majority of his bandages there so he could get at them fast when he first came into the house, unless he'd forgotten his keys. Then he would have had to break into the upstairs bedroom. Sasuke dumped Naruto on the toilet seat and started pulling out the gauze and cotton balls.

Keeping his work quick and efficient, the older of the two began to bandage his friend. The uncomfortable silence was ended when he attached the end of the tensor bandage to itself with the clip. He looked up into Naruto's eyes and saw the accusation in the blue eyes. Standing up, he pulled his rival from the seat and left the small room.

"Stop thinking this is all about you, selfish dobe."

"I'm not your project," Naruto spat out in response. "You can't fix me. You can't save me just because you choose to."

He ducked quickly, anticipating the fist this time, but choked on his breath when the fist was planted in his gut instead of his face. Naruto was about to return the hit when Sasuke suddenly collapsed to the ground in obvious pain, clutching his neck and gasping for breath.

"Sasuke?" he cried, flying to his friend's side. "What's wrong?"

"It's… nothing," Sasuke huffed out, struggling to get into a sitting position on the floor with one hand. He refused to let his hand move an inch from the edge of the bandage that covered his own skin. Even his hands weren't enough to cover the whole thing, but the parts his fingers didn't touch were more than hidden from view, giving the impression of an iceberg. That which was hidden beneath his fingers was obviously much larger than the "tiny" designs that peaked through.

"Don't lie, asshole," Naruto dropped to his knees and raised his hands to try and pry his rival's grip away the wound, but was thrown back.

"It's nothing to you. I'm handling it."

"Tell me the truth, or I swear I'll beat the shit out of you."

"You can't know," Sasuke pushed himself up from the floor, his determination enough to convince the throbbing to lessen enough to clear his head and get to his feet. "It's too dangerous."

The blonde glared at him. How _dare _he? Gritting his teeth, Naruto wound up and kicked his feet out, catching Sasuke's shaky ones and bringing the man back down to the floor, where he jumped forward, sitting on him to keep him on the floor. He grabbed one hand and pinned it to the floor, using his animalistic strength to peel the other one from its death grip on the bandage on his neck and force it to join its brother in his tan grip.

Naruto ripped back the neckline of his childhood shirt to see just how much of the bandage wasn't shown. It was taped in patches to the pale skin, going halfway down his back and covering most of his shoulder blade. The front part just stopped at Sasuke's armpit, though he could see a trace of whatever was underneath beginning to peak out.

"What is it?" he asked softly. Sasuke glared at him, but kept his mouth shut. "You want me to rip that off too?" But Sasuke had no intention of making things easy for his rival. He fought against the tanned hand that was clutching both of his above his head, but they were stretched too far from his body for him to use his strength as leverage. Naruto ignored the protesting movements and pulled the white cloth from Sasuke's neck, swearing colourfully when he saw the truth. His hands loosened their grip and in an instant he was on his back, looking up at the curse seal and dangling bandage.

"Fuck," the blonde whispered. He looked straight into Sasuke's eyes, his blue eyes hard and demanding the truth. "How much?"

Sasuke glared, his lips straightening to a grim line as he ripped off the rest of the bandage to reveal just how much the curse had spread across his chest and back.

"Oh fuck," he repeated, his fingers ghosting along the surface of the intricate pattern that was tattooed across the pale skin. A shiver rippled across the pale skin at his touch. "Why?" Naruto looked up from the inflamed seal to search beneath the red depths that threatened to hide everything from him.

"I don't know."

"Orochimaru is dead."

"It never went away."

"It's eating away at you," Naruto whispered, clutching Sasuke's shoulder, just beyond the curse's reach. "Why did you never tell me?"

"When? When did I ever have the chance? If this takes over my body again like it used to, you'd die."

"Is it an after effect of his death?"

"If it was then why did it wait until now to start spreading?" Naruto shrugged, looking back at the design. "I don't know anything about it, and I never had the chance to. He's dead, and no one else is alive that might know about it. I'm scared." The blonde beneath him was thoughtfully silent for a moment before he shook his head.

"Doesn't Anko-san have the same thing?" he asked. "I'm sure she'd know something about it. Maybe the same thing is happening to her too."

"But what if nothing's happening to her?" Sasuke yelled, trying to cover the fact that he'd forgotten about her. That must have been who Kakashi was talking about.

"So you're just going to deal with this on your own until it completely takes over?" Just the thought of that both infuriated and scared the blonde. Naruto threw a punch to his rival's jaw. "You're a stupid hypocrite."

"My curse is entirely different from your cutting."

"How!"

"You're doing this to yourself!" Anticipating another attack, Sasuke grabbed Naruto's hands before he could punch him again. "You're killing yourself."

"How are you so sure that's not your own fault as well?" the blonde retorted, only struggling slightly beneath Sasuke's weight.

"You don't know anything!" Sasuke yelled, but his anger was cut short at the look of fear that had taken over the face beneath him.

"It's growing," Naruto whispered, staring at the flames as they licked ever closer to his best friend's heart. "You're making it grow." Fighting anew, Naruto pushed the dark-haired man off of him and took off running for the door.

"Naruto, wait!" Naruto stopped at the door and turned back, his expression unreadable.

"No, I'm not coming back until I can expect you to heal yourself."

"What does that mean?"

"I need to save myself before I can try and save you. You, too."

"Don't go."

"What's the difference between us, Sasuke?" Naruto asked softly.

"There is no difference between you and me." The blonde smiled sadly as the words slowly sunk in for Sasuke.

"Goodbye, Sasuke," he whispered and walked out the door.

(Star)(Star)(Star)

Anko stood in the doorway of her house, staring at the young man standing expectantly on her doorstep. She narrowed her eyes, but let out a bark of laughter.

"I heard you were looking for some help," she exclaimed and stepped aside, rolling her eyes at him. "You were waiting for an invitation or something, kid?"

(End of Chapter)

I was keeping track all throughout the writing of this chapter and this is the longest chapter by around 3000 words… ha ha… go me.

As for an explanation for my absence? I stopped liking Naruto… and the story no longer held the allure it did when I first started writing it nearly two and a half years ago (my how time flies). But I found myself and I found a time when I could bring myself back into the story (by losing my notes and being forced to rewrite the whole chapter for a deadline which I missed by a week and a half).

Of course I was also encouraged by all the people who kept reviewing (guilty conscience) and I knew that this was one thing I couldn't leave unfinished. I swore I would finish it and I'm going to keep that promise I made to myself. Too many other things I've done have ended with no ending. Trust me, this one has an ending…

To my reviewers:

To Kamikakushi: Thank you for the praise… I was kind of bitter for a while after losing the NFAs but I've had three months to get over it. I'm very proud of my accomplishment. It was actually my goal to get one thousand reviews… I never even dreamed it was an achievable goal though.

To Lisen: I've been to Elfwood, but my name is Nazo, not Nazu, and I don't recall being there in the last few years.

To j: I'm sorry that you feel I've not portrayed Naruto in the proper light, but I'm only getting started, and I needed him to break in order for him to be stronger when he's patched up. I just hadn't gotten to fixing him until now. As well, I'm not sure how you took it, but Gaara wasn't really hitting on Sasuke. Not seriously anyways, but his explanations will come with time.

To MK: I missed you entirely. Ah well…(I ended up in my Bleach costume the whole weekend) Shinigami pants are the most comfortable clothing I own now. I love cosplaying.

To Basser: I know I'm insane. When I first told my friends I was doing it they laughed at me… seriously… they thought I was insane…Hell, even I didn't think I was going to get to the twentieth chapter. As for all the pairings I have in this story, well, some of them don't actually exist and are only there for my own sick humour and because I know that Kishimoto-sempai works in the same way with his characters. You can feel some kind of bond there and most people assume it's because they're so obviously shagging each other behind the academy. As for long reviews, I can't tell people enough how much I love them. You may think you're writing is pointless and wastes space, but I've found that even the long reviews ALWAYS say something… even if it's just about the reviewer. I like reading the long ones.

To Orenji Yoh-chan: Thank you for the praise, but the only reason I'm so committed to this story is cause I know what it's like to want a long story with a good plot… and I want to have something that is lasting, not just another one-shot.

To Gravity's Addicted: about the Naruto turning into a girl arc, I wanted to do that for one reason only; I wanted to see if it were possible to write about "Naruko" without falling into the obvious clichés used by all the less experienced authors. I'd read enough to know they were all the same. I wanted one where you didn't know how it was going to end.

**Last notes:** I'm in need of a couple of betas (Kyuubi-kun is getting annoyed with me), so I need someone who is fast and efficient and intelligent, not just someone looking to get the chapters before everyone else.

The other is that I'm going to be away from the computer until mid-August, but I'm going to be working out the details of the next chapter and have everything fine-tuned for when I get typing and that way I can have the next part posted as soon as possible. I'm not going to make false promises anymore.

To those who go straight to the review button: **BETAS NEEDED! **


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